The scrum
Rugby union's eight-player set piece — the 3-4-1 formation, the referee's crouch-bind-set sequence, where the scrum-half must stand, the throw-in requirements, and how a scrum ends.
Overview
A scrum restarts play after certain stoppages, most commonly a knock-on or a forward pass. Eight players from each team bind together in formation and contest possession of a ball fed into the tunnel between them.
Law 19 specifies the shape: two props and a hooker in the front row, two locks in the second row, and three back-row players completing the scrum — a 3-4-1 structure.
Crouch, bind, set
The referee controls engagement with three calls. On "crouch" the front rows adopt a crouched position with heads and shoulders no lower than their hips. On "bind" the props bind to the opposing props, and all binding must be maintained in the position it started in for the duration of the scrum.
Only on "set" does the hooker remove the brake foot and the teams engage. The sequence exists to remove the hit — the dangerous, high-speed collision that the previous engagement procedures produced — by making the packs bind before they push.
The feed and the offside lines
The scrum-half must throw the ball in straight, without delay, at a quick speed, in a single forward movement, so that it first touches the ground inside the tunnel. Every one of those adverbs is a separate requirement.
All players not participating in the scrum must remain at least five metres behind the hindmost foot of their team. The non-throwing scrum-half must stand either on their team's side of the middle line next to the opposing scrum-half, or at least five metres behind their own team's hindmost foot.
When the scrum ends
The scrum ends when the ball leaves it other than through the tunnel; when the ball reaches the hindmost player's feet and is picked up; when the number eight retrieves it; when the referee blows the whistle; or when the ball reaches the try line.
That last condition matters near the line: a scrum cannot be used to push the ball over the try line indefinitely, because reaching the line ends the scrum and the ball must then be played.
Key points
- Eight players a side bind in a 3-4-1 formation.
- The referee calls crouch, bind, set — props bind before the packs engage.
- Binding must be maintained in its starting position throughout.
- Players not in the scrum stay five metres behind the hindmost foot.
- The scrum ends when the ball is picked up at the back, leaves the scrum, or reaches the try line.
Where it’s used
Sports that use the scrum:
Related rules
Offside
A rule that prevents an attacker from gaining an advantage by being positioned too close to the opponents' goal ahead of the ball and the last defenders.
Yellow and red cards
The disciplinary cards a football referee shows to caution or send off a player for misconduct.
Offside in rugby union
Rugby union's most context-dependent law — where the offside line sits in open play, what an offside player must not do, the 10-metre rule after a kick, and how a player is put onside.
Sources
The rules, dimensions and specifications on this page were read from these documents.
- Laws of the Game: Rugby Union — World Rugby, Law 19 — Scrum (read 2026-09-12)
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Positions
- Rugby union forwardsThe eight players who contest the set piece — front row, locks and back row — what each unit does at scrum, lineout and breakdown, and why the roles are so specialised.
- Rugby union backsThe seven players who attack the space the forwards create — scrum-half, fly-half, centres, wings and fullback — what each does in attack and defence, and how the line is organised.
- Scrum-halfThe scrum-half is rugby’s link between forwards and backs, feeding the scrum and delivering quick, accurate passes to launch attacks.
- HookerThe hooker is a front-row forward in rugby who wins the ball in the scrum and typically throws the ball into the line-out.
Tactics
- Rugby union set-piece strategyWhy the scrum and lineout are attacking platforms rather than restarts — how a set piece fixes defenders in known positions, and what a team is buying when it chooses one over a kick.
- Set-piece playRehearsed routines from a dead-ball situation such as a corner, free kick or throw-in used to create chances.
- Serve-receive formationHow a volleyball team arranges its passers to receive the serve and set up a clean first attack.
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Techniques
- Rugby union passingHow a rugby pass is actually made — the sideways swing that replaces a throw, why every pass must travel backwards, and what separates a spiral pass from a pop.
- Rugby union tackling techniqueHow a tackle is made safely and legally — where to place the head and shoulder, the height the Laws require, and why technique is a safety question before it is a performance one.
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How this page is maintained
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- Rule
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- Tier A — evergreen educational
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- Content updated
- 2026-09-01
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