The scrum is becoming ever worse in the sport of rugby. It should be a contest between each side’s forwards pack but it has become almost a waste of time that is bound to result in a penalty or free kick. Games with scrums that are all completed successfully have become a thing of the past.

One of the main problems with the scrum is the referee’s interpretation of the laws. During one game, a referee could be very lenient but during another a referee could be very strict. At the end of the day if the players followed the laws then there would be no issues, but that probably won’t happen because each side want to win!

According to this and other eyewitness reports, the attempt to ‘elect’ a new IRB chairman last month descended into pure farce, with the vote now postponed until December.

The shenanigans were caused because the current chairman, Bernard Lapasset, who had apparently agreed to hand over to Bill Beaumont after one term in office, changed his mind. This infuriated Beaumont to the point that the election meeting descended into a rugby match of its own. The ridiculous behaviour of some of the delegates prompted the highly respected Welsh representative Gerald Davies to call out: “Gentlemen, take a look at yourselves. This is not the way to behave.”