Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Coaching, Rugby Team Management | Tags: Any Given Sunday, Gary Gold, motivation, winning games
Gary Gold, the Springboks and Sharks assistant coach, has always been great at posting superb rugby resources. Here is another. Not sure if we could do this speech each week though!
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Skills | Tags: 9 skills, clearing passes, scrum half passing, spin passes
Here are simple to use scrum half passing drills from Jamie Hamilton an Englishman working for the Crusaders in New Zealand.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Team Management | Tags: Brian Ashton, management of players, team play, teamwork
Brian Ashton former England and Ireland coach makes the case that the emphasis on playing for the team is perhaps misguided. It needs to be looked at in the context of the whole game.
From an article in the Independent.
February 13, 2010
Brian Ashton: Individuals make the best team players
Tackling The Issues
“There is no ‘I’ in ‘teams’.” Most of us who have been involved in coaching or management for any length of time are familiar with this well-worn phrase, which, given the frequency with which it is heard, might more accurately be called a mantra.
Like many snippets of home-spun sporting philosophy, it attempts to capture the essence of a basic truth: in this case, that the significance of the individual in a team game is as nothing compared to the importance of the collective. And like many of these one-liners, it misses the point.
Just ask Warren Gatland about the influence of individuals, their thought processes and their decision-making. I’d be very interested to know the Wales coach’s private view on Alun Wyn Jones and his visit to the sin bin during last week’s Six Nations scrap with England (although I can probably work it out for myself). And what about the interception pass thrown by Stephen Jones towards the end of the match? If these individual contributions were not absolutely central to the outcome of the contest, I was watching a different game to everyone else.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, rugby defence, Rugby Skills, Rugby Training | Tags: breakdown skills, Gary Gold, Henrich Brussow, tackle area
Here is an excellent analysis of the way that South African flanker Heinrich Brussow wins the tackle area, often making the other side concede penalties. Gary Gold, the South African assistant coach gives us his expert view.
We featured Gary in two issues of the International Rugby Technical Journal.
It comes from a clip from the RugbyIQ.com, which has some great resources and some of the best video training clips on the web at the moment.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Coaching, rugby defence, Rugby Skills | Tags: big tackles, head position, Six Nations, tackle, tackle technique
Here are some tackles and hits from the first weekend of the Six Nations.
Most interesting for me is the head position. The head should LEAD the tackle, because where it ends up pretty much determines the momentum of the body. I don’t mean the head “makes” the impact, but leads the rest of the body to the point of contact.
To get the head in the most powerful position, the feet should be close to the ball carrier and the eyes open.
Watch these tackles to see where it works and what can happen if it is mistimed!
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Skills, Rugby Training | Tags: decision making, scanning, technology
This is an interesting innovation. A camera on the head of the player to see what he sees.
Would like to test this out in decision making drills.
The latest International Rugby Technical Journal has a piece from thevideoanalyst.com on providing more effective feedback to the players. Perhaps we could use this technology.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Skills | Tags: Mike Cron, Rugby Smart, scrum
Here is a video featuring Mike Cron, the All Black scrum guru, on scrummaging techniques. It comes from Rugby Smart the New Zealand union’s coaching toolbox.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Refereeing, Rugby Training | Tags: breakdown, laws, Richie McCaw, rucks, rugby laws, tackle area
Richie McCaw is apparently keen to clear up the roles in the breakdown. It will be interesting to see if this works out. He plays hard and as close to the law as he can. That’s his right to do so until he is penalised.
Here is a good article on what he is saying from Planet Rugby:
Crusaders captain Richie McCaw hopes referees will be consistent in their application of the new breakdown laws during the upcoming Super 14 season.
The All Blacks skipper and flanker has long been a master in one of the most troublesome areas of the game, but is looking forward to the new emphasis on favouring the side in possession.
“It’s going to reward players who are really accurate. Perhaps when players are almost on their feet, or getting up there’s a wee bit of grey area there and some refs would allow you (to play the ball) and some wouldn’t,” he said.
“They’ve said they’re going to be pretty strict on it so unless someone who is really accurate gets in and contests the ball, the team with it will keep it and be able to play.
“It’s all good in theory it will just be interesting to see how it goes.
“Technically, it would require the ball carrier to do everything right, and that should allow some good rugby to be played.
“Teams that are really accurate and figure that out how to get their breakdown right will be the ones that do pretty well.”
But McCaw also warned that teams will not be afraid to play a tighter game when the situation demands it, although he does hope to see plenty of positive intent when the season begins on February 12.
“There’s times when that’s not possible (running the ball) but you have got to have other things up your sleeve. I think if all teams have that sort of attitude and I know all the guys in teams around New Zealand certainly want to play like that,” he said.
