THE BOX KICK IS DRIVING ME MAD, SHAUN. HELP!
CW: I’VE lost patience with the box kick. If we’d had packed stadiums in the autumn, paying spectators would be leaving before the end. It’s the caterpillars and the slow motion nature of play and scrum-halves being given unlimited time with nobody allowed to tackle them. Yet some international coaches justify it by saying it’s just the way the game has developed! What do you make of it?
SE: Firstly, the big picture. It’s important to have a great kicking game and that was the first thing I spoke about with Fabian when I joined. When I was with Wales we won a lot of close games with France because we had a better kicking game. If they had our kicking skills and options, they win. But the box kick? When it first caught on, as a defensive coach I was licking my lips. If the opposition scrum-half is only allowed five seconds
— as the law was intended — you can cause chaos by good, aggressive, legal counter-rucking and pressurising the nine. With Wales we had quite a bit of success at the 2015 World Cup with those tactics. But over time refs started getting very lenient and protecting the scrum-half. Five seconds? I’ve counted up to 13 before the scrumhalf finally hoists the kick and then the attack coaches have come up with these caterpillars to protect the scrum-half even more. If the situation was refereed as originally intended, there would be much less box kicking.
CW: So, because of the caterpillar and because referees never implement the ‘use it or lose it’ rule, the scrumhalf has ample time to put in excellent kicks which give the team in possession every chance of winning the ball in the air. If the nine really only had a couple of seconds, there would be far less accuracy and potentially you are giving the opposition good-quality free ball.
SE: Exactly.
CW: So the game needs to wise up. No more caterpillars and a penalty for not using it within five seconds. That would then make scrum-halves use quick, quality passes and, if they do kick, be skilful enough to kick under real pressure. It’s a good start, Shaun!