Ireland star, Tadhg Beirne, claims rugby 'going backwards'
Posted: Tue Dec 30, 2025 10:08 am
I agree with Beirne. Rugby has turned into kick-and-chase, which plays into the hands of teams with bigger players and a strong set-piece game. What I want to watch is clever interplay, players with skills to beat a man, not just smash through him.
Munster captain Tadhg Beirne says current laws are taking the game 'backwards'.
Beirne was speaking after his side's defeat to derby day rivals Leinster, and bemoaned that too many styles are dominated by kicking and scrummaging.
“Let’s be honest about it, the style of the game has gone backwards. If we're being serious, teams are just kicking the ball," he said.
“Why? Because it's a 50-50 chance of getting the ball back. Teams are going to set-pieces more because if you go up for a 50-50 in the air and you get a knock on, you get a scrum. And if you have a good scrum, you can get a penalty into the corner.
“It's just becoming a set-piece and kicking game with the way they've changed the rules. You see teams kicking more and more and I think it's just going to continue going that way unless they decide to do something about it.”
Pressed on what he meant by “backwards”, he replied: “What? The stop-start, it’s just kick, chase, scrum and then go from there, no. You want a bit more flow to the game, personally.
“I suppose that's my opinion on it. I guess all teams are probably spending a lot more time on how they exit and their kicking game and all that kind of stuff. It'll probably take away from attack and defence a little bit because you have to spend so much time on kicking.
“How you chase a kick, what your set-up is, all that kind of stuff.”
Munster captain Tadhg Beirne says current laws are taking the game 'backwards'.
Beirne was speaking after his side's defeat to derby day rivals Leinster, and bemoaned that too many styles are dominated by kicking and scrummaging.
“Let’s be honest about it, the style of the game has gone backwards. If we're being serious, teams are just kicking the ball," he said.
“Why? Because it's a 50-50 chance of getting the ball back. Teams are going to set-pieces more because if you go up for a 50-50 in the air and you get a knock on, you get a scrum. And if you have a good scrum, you can get a penalty into the corner.
“It's just becoming a set-piece and kicking game with the way they've changed the rules. You see teams kicking more and more and I think it's just going to continue going that way unless they decide to do something about it.”
Pressed on what he meant by “backwards”, he replied: “What? The stop-start, it’s just kick, chase, scrum and then go from there, no. You want a bit more flow to the game, personally.
“I suppose that's my opinion on it. I guess all teams are probably spending a lot more time on how they exit and their kicking game and all that kind of stuff. It'll probably take away from attack and defence a little bit because you have to spend so much time on kicking.
“How you chase a kick, what your set-up is, all that kind of stuff.”
) to play 80 minutes. No more bomb squads coming on at 50 minutes (unless teams want to risk running out of players in the last quarter of the match).