Cheap tactic

No it's not. It's smart. The "defending" team need to either wait until the ball is out or push the other scrum off the ball.

Just needs some thought that's all.

Clever play, nothing cheap about it.

If it can be done and there is no rule against it then why not?

I can understand why people don't like it; it seems a cheap trick, reminiscent of the now-outlawed dummying to play the ball RU scrum halves used to do behind a ruck.

All that said, it's within the rules, so...

Phil Clarke said he wouldn't pay to watch that, yet it was his beloved Wigan and coach MM that brought it into the game!

It was around before then. In reality it goes all the way back to pre-split to be honest but in the modern game it was around before MM. Teams used to trap the ball at the LF position in the scrum but then the RFL changed the rules a few years ago to where the ball is deemed out of the scrum when it passes the second rows. So now teams are trapping it in the 2nd row.


I've no problem at all with it. Defences are, effectively, trying to cheat by advancing before the ref calls the ball out so its up to them to wait. Or even better, push in the scrum.

Nothing wrong with it at all, got a bigger issue with the way players are disputing decisions very aggressively and vociferously

I don't like it but if other teams are doing it then I don't want my team to be disadvantage. At least it adds something to scrum...

Phil Clarke is just a massive hypocrite.

Good piece of skill holding it in the 2nd row, I’ve no problem with it as long as the defending players can hear the refs call, as to when the ball is out.

As players, it must be hard to hear anything, above the din of screaming harpies in the stands.

Yes that's the only problem about communication. Tonight hicks shouted half of 'out' before changing his mind and then penalised saints for it.

I agree, don't like the tactic at all. We did it a lot last night, and I think it's a bit of a desperate tactic. It could lead to teams pushing in the scrum more though.

WOW!!!

People whinging when teams play to the rules

Whatever next?

If teams trap the ball then push at the scrum

The first infringement at every scrum is feeding, yet the referee chooses to ignore this rule then seconds later hit the opposition defence for offside! This area of the game is a joke really, I don't know who has decided to constantly ignore the scrum feeding law.

Put-in or Feeding the Scrum 6. (a) The ball shall be put into the scrum from the Referee’s side by holding it in a horizontal position with a point in each hand and rolling it along the ground into the tunnel formed by the opposing front row forwards.

For me if you are going to ignore the feeding you must then ignore the offside other wise you are giving the team feeding the ball an unfair advantage.