Former Test referee Nigel Owens has expressed his worry that World Rugby is at risk of weakening the scrum with their latest proposed law changes. The governing body has suggested several ideas to be voted on in May, such as closing the ‘Dupont Law’ gap and eliminating the ‘croc roll’. Moreover, there may be a global experiment with the controversial 20-minute red card rule, along with a proposal to prevent teams from opting for a scrum after being awarded a free-kick from the same set-piece. This has sparked outrage in South Africa, as it could nullify one of their key strengths.

Owens agrees, stating in his WalesOnline column, that removing the option to take another scrum from a free-kick following a scrum could diminish the importance of this aspect of the game, potentially leading to more collapsed scrums and resets. He argues that while it is important to address scrum issues, weakening them is not the solution. Owens also fears that weaker scrum teams may resort to gamesmanship to exploit this new rule, causing a skewed interpretation of scrummaging dominance. He questions why World Rugby feels the need to constantly modify the laws of the game, unlike other sports such as football, which have remained relatively unchanged for many years.

Owens asserts that the focus should be on enforcing existing laws more strictly rather than introducing new ones.