New Law Trial to reduce neck/spine injuries at scrum time

[JM2K6]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/1512 ... f5dc64fd88

World Rugby is implementing a law trial for the Six Nations to address a scrummaging technique that has left hookers suffering degenerative neck injuries and fearing paralysis.

An investigation by The Times in October revealed that elite male hookers are having to cope with an estimated 1,000 Newtons of force — the equivalent of 100kg — compressing their neck and spine at almost every scrum.

That “hidden” danger is known as axial loading and is the unintended consequence of a law change — the “crouch, bind, set” engagement sequence — that was introduced in 2013 to make scrummaging safer.

Axial loading occurs when a pack leans forward on the bind phase, leading to enormous force being transmitted through the neck and spine of the hooker, whose head is being driven into the shoulder of his opponent.

World Rugby banned axial loading before the 2019 World Cup but were warned in March 2020 that the practice still persisted. The governing body has been under pressure from International Rugby Players (IRP) to take action.

The law trial is designed to ensure that the packs hold their own weight on the bind phase, retaining a small gap between the front rows, and do not begin applying pressure until they engage. It will be mandatory for hookers in the men’s, women’s and under-20 Six Nations to keep one foot forward during the bind phase of the scrum engagement sequence, acting as a brake.

If the hooker has both feet back it is impossible for the pack to hold its weight and axial loading is the inevitable outcome. The punishment for a hooker not using a brake foot will be a free kick.

“I know concussion gets all the headlines but this is a serious player safety issue. It needs to be resolved,” David Quinlan, head of legal and player welfare for the IRP, said.

“This law trial is definitely a positive step. We’ve had players very strongly advocating for it. We need to applaud World Rugby for moving on it. Ideally, we would have done it a year ago but the point is there is progress.”

The “crouch, bind, set” engagement sequence was introduced in 2013 to reduce the risk of catastrophic injuries by closing the gap between the two front rows, thereby reducing the speed of engagement and increasing stability.

It has been successful, but many hookers preferred the old system — when the two packs would charge together across a wider gap — because of the pressure they are having to withstand through their necks.

“It feels like your neck is about to snap,” Scott Baldwin, the Worcester Warriors and Wales hooker, said. “When I went to see the surgeon, the surgeon said that since the law change [in 2013] he has seen a significant increase in operations on the upper necks of hookers.”

Baldwin, 31, required a disc replacement and was told that he would have been paralysed had the bulge in his spine been three millimetres to the left.

“I know of young international hookers who are already struggling to do competitive scrummaging sessions,” Quinlan said.

Baldwin was one of the hookers advocating for the brake foot to be mandatory, but there is not a universal belief that it will solve the problem. One of the issues is that players and coaches will always look to find a competitive advantage.

“I feel we have to do something,” Quinlan said. “Let’s give this a go. Let’s sit down after the Six Nations and review it, and if something else needs to be done then we can look at that as well.”

One of the potential factors for further examination is whether the locks need to take a split stand — with only one knee on the floor — because rising up from both knees pushes weight forward on to the front row. “This is a complicated area. There is no quick fix,” Quinlan said.

Will be interesting to see how this pans out. A little surprised they didn't go with prebinding of the front rows first before anyone else forms up.

[Happyhooker]

Saw this earlier and was pondering whether it would make much difference or help at all.

I always used it to hold our pack back, but if you released it at the correct time you could almost catapult yourself into the contact.

[JM2K6]

Saw this earlier and was pondering whether it would make much difference or help at all.

I always used it to hold our pack back, but if you released it at the correct time you could almost catapult yourself into the contact.

It seems like even if that happens it's not so much a problem, because the cause is the hooker's head going straight into the opposing player's shoulder & dealing with all that weight for some time before the proper "engage" (whereupon the head then slips below the shoulder).

[Torquemada 1420]

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/1512 ... f5dc64fd88

World Rugby is implementing a law trial for the Six Nations to address a scrummaging technique that has left hookers suffering degenerative neck injuries and fearing paralysis.

An investigation by The Times in October revealed that elite male hookers are having to cope with an estimated 1,000 Newtons of force — the equivalent of 100kg — compressing their neck and spine at almost every scrum.

That “hidden” danger is known as axial loading and is the unintended consequence of a law change — the “crouch, bind, set” engagement sequence — that was introduced in 2013 to make scrummaging safer.

Axial loading occurs when a pack leans forward on the bind phase, leading to enormous force being transmitted through the neck and spine of the hooker, whose head is being driven into the shoulder of his opponent.

World Rugby banned axial loading before the 2019 World Cup but were warned in March 2020 that the practice still persisted. The governing body has been under pressure from International Rugby Players (IRP) to take action.

The law trial is designed to ensure that the packs hold their own weight on the bind phase, retaining a small gap between the front rows, and do not begin applying pressure until they engage. It will be mandatory for hookers in the men’s, women’s and under-20 Six Nations to keep one foot forward during the bind phase of the scrum engagement sequence, acting as a brake.

If the hooker has both feet back it is impossible for the pack to hold its weight and axial loading is the inevitable outcome. The punishment for a hooker not using a brake foot will be a free kick.

“I know concussion gets all the headlines but this is a serious player safety issue. It needs to be resolved,” David Quinlan, head of legal and player welfare for the IRP, said.

“This law trial is definitely a positive step. We’ve had players very strongly advocating for it. We need to applaud World Rugby for moving on it. Ideally, we would have done it a year ago but the point is there is progress.”

The “crouch, bind, set” engagement sequence was introduced in 2013 to reduce the risk of catastrophic injuries by closing the gap between the two front rows, thereby reducing the speed of engagement and increasing stability.

It has been successful, but many hookers preferred the old system — when the two packs would charge together across a wider gap — because of the pressure they are having to withstand through their necks.

“It feels like your neck is about to snap,” Scott Baldwin, the Worcester Warriors and Wales hooker, said. “When I went to see the surgeon, the surgeon said that since the law change [in 2013] he has seen a significant increase in operations on the upper necks of hookers.”

Will be interesting to see how this pans out. A little surprised they didn't go with prebinding of the front rows first before anyone else forms up.

Agree. It's the blindingly obvious solution.