Refereed an U18 Natwest Cup Vase game this afternoon. Most enjoyable. Blue score and the red captain lets me know that his front row ae complaining that the blue loose head prop is hooking! Now I recall the day when loose heads used to sweep their left foot in after the ball to help the hooker. It came as a surprise to red that anyone in the front row can hook the ball. Elite rugby has done us few favours in the scrum.
Ye gods and little fishes!
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Dixie
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We-ee-ee-ll it is possible to produce a technical counter-argument, which is doubtless where these youths were coming from. I expect they attend a very good school, as your bog-standard sink Comprehensive tends not to enter the Vase.
a) From the moment the scrum forms to the moment the scrum starts, all FR players must be in a position to shove. [20.2(a)]
b) During that time, the LHP must not cross his feet [20.2(b)]
c) Scrum begins when the ball leaves the SH's hands [20.7(a)]
d) The LHP is not allowed to hook for the ball until after it bounces [20.8(b)]
e) The ball must bounce beyond the LHP's inside shoulder [20.6(d)]
Looking at all that, we might interpret d) to mean that the LHP's hooking foot cannot leave the ground until after the bounce. The actual wording is:
[LAWS](b) Striking after the throw-in. Once the ball touches the ground in the tunnel, any front row player may use either foot to try to win possession of the ball.[/LAWS]
There is a clear implication that the LHP putting his foot up before the bounce is an offence. That leaves us with the oppo hooker's foot much closer to the ball than the LHP (unless he's hooking with his inside foot); if the LHP gets there first with the outside foot, we may presume either that the oppo hooker is unutterably useless, or that the LHP had his foot up before the bounce.
So your youthful interlocutor may have had a point.
a) From the moment the scrum forms to the moment the scrum starts, all FR players must be in a position to shove. [20.2(a)]
b) During that time, the LHP must not cross his feet [20.2(b)]
c) Scrum begins when the ball leaves the SH's hands [20.7(a)]
d) The LHP is not allowed to hook for the ball until after it bounces [20.8(b)]
e) The ball must bounce beyond the LHP's inside shoulder [20.6(d)]
Looking at all that, we might interpret d) to mean that the LHP's hooking foot cannot leave the ground until after the bounce. The actual wording is:
[LAWS](b) Striking after the throw-in. Once the ball touches the ground in the tunnel, any front row player may use either foot to try to win possession of the ball.[/LAWS]
There is a clear implication that the LHP putting his foot up before the bounce is an offence. That leaves us with the oppo hooker's foot much closer to the ball than the LHP (unless he's hooking with his inside foot); if the LHP gets there first with the outside foot, we may presume either that the oppo hooker is unutterably useless, or that the LHP had his foot up before the bounce.
So your youthful interlocutor may have had a point.
matty1194
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Or maybe it's like a lot of scrums in the Aviva and RABO wereby when the 9 puts the ball into the tunnel it sits their as neither hooker is confident to have a "hook" at it and the LHP is sick of being in the scrummaging position and thinks stuff this, im doing his bloody job!
Dixie
You'd make a great lawyer. The ball bounced around in the tunnel - not hooked cleanly - and th LHP tidied it up.
Just noticed that you are described as "retired from Berkshire". Was that by choice? (Couldn't resist it! ;-) ]
You'd make a great lawyer. The ball bounced around in the tunnel - not hooked cleanly - and th LHP tidied it up.
Just noticed that you are described as "retired from Berkshire". Was that by choice? (Couldn't resist it! ;-) ]
Browner
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