Filed under: Dan Cottrell, International Rugby Technical Journal, Rugby Coaching, Rugby News | Tags: Gary Gold, Leicester Tigers, rugby upsets, Springboks
By rights, the South African second string team should have beaten the Leicester second string team.
We can argue about the exact mix in each side, but neither team was the strongest available. So one might expect the international team to prevail. Yet as any international coach knows, a game where the international team plays a club side is fraught with danger. You are expected to win and anything other than a demolition of the other team is seen as a failure.
On the other hand, having spent a good deal of time talking to Gary Gold, the Springbok assistant coach, in recent weeks, you are also very wary of the fickle nature of the game.
Gary, who coached at London Irish in the early 2000s, is a realist. He will have known that the Leicester players will have sniffed an upset. Interestingly the game was won and lost up front, where big hearts can sometimes overcome big muscles.
I suspect that the South African coaching group tried their level best to convince their team that the Tigers would do what tigers do best when their backs are against the wall, come out all tooth and claw. It would have been different on the High Veld, but in front of the home supporters, the Leicester team were too determined.
An upset, yes. A complete surprise, no. Munster nearly beat the All Blacks last year and I watched the Osprey second string beat the Aussie a few years ago too.
What Gary would say is that coaching is as much about man management as it is about coaching the technical aspects of the game. Read more in the latest International Rugby Technical Journal, out today.
So you can lose the game because your mindset is not right. And the most frustrating thing is that the players are not always convinced of the magnitude of the task in front them!
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Refereeing, rugby defence | Tags: attacking the gain line, Dan Carter, dangerous play, high tackle
Few will have escaped the news that Dan Carter has been cited for a high tackle on Welsh replacement scrum half, Martin Roberts.
Roberts was pretty circumspect about the incident afterwards, unlike his coaches, who railed against the referees decision. Anyone who knows Roberts will not be surprised by his comments. He is a bright player, who thinks deeply about the game.
As for Carter, he continues to be masterful on the pitch. From a coaching point of view, he attacks the gain line. He does this in two ways. First, he sometimes runs at it. Starting flat he accelerates at angles so defenders have to go with him or the defenders either side of him.
Second, he pushes the ball around the field from boot or hand, but always into dangerous places. It is rare that either Carter or the next All Black player who touches the ball is not causing peril for the defence.
Though not as destructive as Jonny Wilkinson, Carter is a fine tackler. Which makes the tackle on Roberts all the more interesting. He went high. There is no doubt that he was aiming at the ball. In the speed of the game, as Roberts dipped slightly, the arm slid over the ball and hit the head.
Dan Carter is not a dirty player. But he did tackle too high. It should have been a yellow card because it was a significant intervention. In the speed of the game, the referee missed it. It was in the middle of the pitch, so the touch judges missed it.
He should not be banned. It was a mistake at the time which should have been punished.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Fitness | Tags: contact area, new rugby drills, Rugby Fitness
Here is an interesting fitness drill which should be easy to set up. What do you think?
It is described as: A rugby fitness drill designed to improve fitness around the contact area with an emphasis on low body angle and height
Filed under: Better Rugby Blog Guests, Mark Calverley, Rugby Fitness, Rugby Training | Tags: coaching U12s, fitness training, weight training
Here is an opinion on weight training for Under 12s from Mark Calverley, one of the main contributors to Rugby Coach Weekly. He is en experienced IRB level 4 rugby coach and conditioner.
I don’t think weight training is suitable for U12’s for a number of reasons:
Poor technique can lead to dangerous situations/injury
Needs to be expertly supervised 1 on 1 with real care take as to what exercises, reps, sets and exercise.
Time is precious when coaching kids – far better to work on skills than fitness
Fitness can be built in to ball work games/drills/exercises – this is more motivating and fun for kids and keeps them interested longer as they are getting fit without realising it and going through a ‘mental toughness’ session.
Kids of this age should be doing lots of running (up to 12 minutes continuous, but relay races, tag games (agility), sprints and fartlek.) The more that can be done through games the better. Body weight exercises that are good include press, ups, sit-ups, bridges, pull ups, no-weight squats, no-weight lunges, hurdles, skipping, shuttle sprints, hopping and bounding (in small doses with plenty of rest between) and short hill sprints (5-15m).
The key is to pitch it right for the kids – this is a balance between them having fun, challenge, learning and results. The exact mix of that is an art, not a science and depends on the amount of training time, the skill of the team, personality of the kids and their desire. It is really important that an (over) ambitious coach doesn’t see fitness as a shortcut for skill development.
I don’t see any real advantages in weights sessions for U12 kids – it is a recipie for disaster and not what they should be doing as part of their rugby development. I think the disadvantages far outweigh any small advantages that they may get. Technical, smart, skillful kids will always beat a fit kid with no skill.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Coaching, Rugby Skills | Tags: auckland grids, inexperienced coaches, queuing, skills training, training
Putting players on four corners of a square is a common form of training set up. In its simplest form, the front player runs across the box, performs a skill and passes the ball to the player on the opposite corner.
It keeps training contained, works on footwork and awareness as well as more specific skills like passing or contact. The coach has good control over the activity and it is easy to set up.
Its exact origins are unknown though it has been commonly known as the “Auckland grid”. There are plenty of variations because the set up has a good base to make adjustments.
A number of coaches don’t like the grid though.
Here are some of those reasons:
1. It makes players run to a fixed point, unlike in the game.
2. Some of the ball transfer encourages forward passes.
3. Queuing is bad for players. It doesn’t happen in the game.
Are these reasons enough to make the Auckland grid not worthwhile?
I don’t use them because I hope I can find better ways to warm up or work on skills.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Skills, Rugby Team Management | Tags: changing minds, coaching, developing players
If you had forty seconds with any player, what would you do to make them a better player?
Well, it does depend on so many factors, like how much you know the player.
But let’s say you have never met him or her before. You know the standard of rugby they play and what position they are.
Would it be a tactical, technical or conditioning thought?
I think that I would use none of the above. Instead I would work on giving them a method of thinking about their own game and how they approach it. It could help them build on something they have already, or something they might consider anew.
I would ask one quick question and then give my reply based on that answer.
As the week unfolds I will say more about this.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Training | Tags: 10000 hours, learning, practice
To become an expert in something, you need to practise for 10,000 hours.
That means about 3 hours a day for 10 years.
Though this statistic is daunting, the research behind it says that people who practice more are better than people who don’t. Studies have looked at comparable talents, examined their practice routines and seen that the sweat and tears pays off.
As I write this, I am “touch typing”. I must have done the 10,000 hours by now!
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, International Rugby Technical Journal, Rugby Training | Tags: Welsh Women
This is where I am training the Welsh Women squad this weekend.
Unfortunately, though it is to Millenium Stadium specifications, it does alllow in the rain and wind!
Look out for an excellent article on playing surfaces and training areas by Pitchcare.com editor, Laurence Gale, in this month’s International Rugby Technical Journal.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Skills, Rugby Training | Tags: coaching interventions, passing drills, touch rugby, what would you do
Here is a great video of a team training, and concentrating on passing. They then go into a game of touch.
The passing drills are pretty standard. The players are enjoying the training. However the quality of processes and therefore outcomes are not high.
What coaching input might you add?
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Fitness, Rugby Team Management | Tags: despair, injury, man management, mental anguish
An injured player is damaged physically and mentally.
There are plenty of sites and people who can help fix the player physically, but what can we do as coaches to help the mental anguish.
An injury leads to a number of mental states, which can go from despair to denial to realisation.
Avoiding psycho babble at this stage, you have to empathise with the situation first. Then you need to reassure the player about coming back to play.
It is such a crucial area of man management which is often left to quick words at rushed moments which can exacerbate the player’s emotional state. More on this area in the next few weeks.
