One suggestion for strategy here is use the crash-crash-crash nonsense to spring your back line.
Indeed, when the defending forwards curtain up along the back foot of a lost ruck, if they have restrained from committing, they do have more defending forwards than you have attacking (offending? - sometimes ;) forwards.
However, they must spread out, which allows you to put more forwards into a specific area of that curtain than they presently have.
The problem withspreading the attack away from the ruck is that you have fairly good coverage from their defensive backline (no offensive advantage),PLUS several forwards on their feet near the defensive backline in perfect position for pursuit.
I would offer as one possible strategy:Attack on the open side near the end of the fringe, forcing those forwards closest to the defending backline to commit to the tackle/ruck/maul.
Don't attack beyond the fringe, or even atthe last player, but rather between the last two players forcing the outside man to turn/move in.
Ideally, s/he will have to be involved in the breakdown, if not, they are at least held close to it.
This widens the gap between the pursuing forwards (now on the blind side of the breakdown) and the defending backline.
Recycle ball immediately and attack this gap before the forwards can reposition themselves on around this breakdown, (some of them will still be on the groundfrom the first breakdown) and attack this gap.
Offensive 10 must hold the defensive 10 out with a hard charge, dump the ball directly to the 12 switching back into the gap, or the blind side wing coming in.
Scrumhalf can determine if the defending 10 is covering the gap,if so, straight to 10-13-15-W.
Idea is to get 12 or W through the gap before the forwards can move to cover, or get the ball beyond the defending backline if they cover the gap.
Outside two meters the crash should never be looked at as an attack, but rather a way to move defenders out of position to create a hole, and you ALWAYS want to force forwards to pursue from the farthest position in which you can put them.
One other note about the crash-crash-crash nonsense.
; The mentality seems to be that if I run into them enough times, they will let me through. Not a good approach because it takes as much out of your crashing players as it does out of them (almost). We see a lot of packs attack the fringe on one side then the other, then back to the first, then back ad nauseum.
This really doesn't do anything because time is against you.You allow the backline to reposition, and you keep the defending forwards close to their jobs (they have plenty of time to reposition).
Rather, attack a side (open side preferably) and attack it. This will make the defending forwards continually have to get up, move back and across because the play never returns to them.
Your forwards always know where they are going.
This will open gaps between the pack and backline, or on the wing. Either way, your forwards are in a better position to support a breakdown.
If no gaps open up, or you are gaining ground, continue moving the breakdown to the center of the field.
Here you can allow your backs to split which, I would contend, is the most advantageous position from which to launch an attack.
Ideally, their forwards slow down enough that one of their backs has to come in and help stop the crash.
Since I'm a #8, truly ideally is that their #10 has to come in .