Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Coaching, Rugby Skills | Tags: clearing out threats at the ruck, coaching rucking, rugby rucks
Watch this video and look at how both teams struggle to win either clean ruck ball or any ruck ball because players stop at the ruck.
Whatever we say about sealing and bridging, this sends a clear message that it rarely produces “winning” ruck ball.
Rugby coaches should be coaching rucking skills that drive out threats, produce clean ball for the next player and protect the eventual clearing passer.
Filed under: Dan Cottrell, Rugby Team Management, Rugby Training | Tags: coaching rucking, coaching rugby defence, coaching rugby to young players, coaching tackling, persistence, pride in your team, Thornbury RFC, youth rugby
About this time last year, Bill Pratt begged me to come down to Thornbury RFC to do a session with his Under 14s.
His second email was worse!
”Dan, I will not keep writing to you. Bust a gut and train my boy’s on Thursday. We are away to Dursley and we need some work on defence. One session is all i ask. Go on you know you can!! Bill.”
Well, what could I say. Though it took some time to find a suitable slot, I “bust a gut” and trained them last night.
I arrived on crisp autumn evening at the grounds on the outskirts of Bristol (where I brought up). Bill was there to greet me and my first impressions where that it was a well organised junior club.
I split my session into two themes, body shapes in the tackle and body shapes into contact. It was a “kitchen sink” session, so I covered four times as much as I would in normal session, with the idea that Bill could build on any or all of the points over the next month or so.
There were 22 boys (now under 15s) in all. They were polite, chatty but attentive and obviously enjoyed their rugby. They were responsive to questioning and gave some good feedback. They worked hard and with purpose in the exercises.
It is sometimes easy to come in to do a one off session and hold the players attention because you are a fresh face and new voice. However it is easier if there is good environment for the players to work in. Bill and his co-coaches are rightly proud of their boys. This pride manifests itself in pride and desire in the boys.
My initial reflections are:
1. Got to keep asking, what is the worst they can say?
2. Be proud of your team, they will return your trust.
There was some video of the session, so with any luck I might be able to post some next week. Then you can see whether I taught them anything!
