The Loosehead prop together with Hooker has to put pressure on the opposition Tight head and drive the scrum forward .  Where possible the loosehead should look to burrow his underneath of the opposition tightheads chest and look to push him up whilst driving forwards.  On his own teams put in the loosehead must help to stabilise the scrum as the scrum half will put the ball in on the loosehead side. By stabilising the scrum the loosehead allows his hooker to hook the ball backwards and through the legs of the second row to secure safe ball.

 

The loosehead will usually be one of the key driving forces in a maul either offensively or defensively. In defence he must look to disrupt opposition ball and attempt to drive the attackers backwards. In an attack maul he needs to help protect the man with the ball whilst driving the maul forwards and will often act as a pivot when the maul switches direction.

 

 

In open play loosehead props will generally be expected to help defend around the breakdown whilst also offering the half backs a strong ball carrying option in attack.  Although unlikely to run the length of the pitch the loosehead will generally be expected to get over the gain line with each carry. The loosehead is a key weapon during rucks and will be expected to hit as many rucks as often and as hard as possible to secure own ball and attempt to turn over opposition ball.

 

Props must be the most intense players on the pitch. This intensity must come to the fore during a scrum. The focus and concentration--physical, mental, emotional--required to dominate in the scrum far surpasses that displayed by other players.  There is a difference in the two prop positions that could very well be reflected in the character of the players. The Loosehead needs to be more aggressive.

 

Every rugby fan has his own idea of what greatness is and more often than not the list will feature an inordinate number of his contemporaries because those are the players he knows best; I make no apology for doing likewise.  So without further adieu, here is one man’s opinion of who occupies Rugby Union's Mount Olympus. Here are my top 5 Loosehead Props in the history of the sport.  Let the arguing begin.