EXPERT SESSIONS AND ADVICE FROM QUALIFIED AND EXPERIENCED GRASSROOTS RUGBY COACHES
10/15/2020 | Rugby drills
If your players can create a one versus one opportunity, it is a chance to breach the gain line. If they can unbalance their opposite defender, then they should succeed. Players need to understand that there are a number of ways to unsettle the defender both with and without the ball. It helps for the attacker to know what the defender is trying to achieve and reverse the psychology. Here are four of them. MORE
10/18/2020 | Rugby drills
Players work on their passing accuracy and then straight into a 2 v 1. The quick change should focus the players on working hard at executing their skills well. To improve passing, develop technique and then put it under pressure. This activity does both in a very short space of time. MORE
10/17/2020 | Rugby drills
Without forcing the issue, use this race to illustrate to your players the need to run with two hands on the ball, so they can pass quickly and in both directions. Two hands on the ball means players are able to pass in any direction immediately, which is important to maintain continuity. MORE
07/28/2020 | Mini tag
Get your ball carriers used to running forward to score tries. This session can be run as a warm-up or as a proper tackling session as well. Often players fail to run forwards even when they know the try line is that way. This session should encourage them to attack a space in front them and go for it. MORE
12/7/2019 | Rugby coaching
Your side will have its fair share of stars, good players and not-so-good. Keep all the players involved and happy, and make each one feel they are a world-beater. MORE
11/24/2019 | Rugby drills
"There’s not much incentive to be a third receiver. The Law of the Jungle suggests that if you want to touch the ball, you get close to it." MORE
10/13/2020 | Rugby drills
Use this game-exercise-game activity to develop passing skills for all ages of players. You control the intensity to suit the skills of the players. They have to inject the energy. Use a game to motivate the players to improve their passing, then develop it in an exercise before returning to the game. MORE
10/2/2020 | Girls/Womens
Try this fun game to help players work on defensive organisation. By forming a physical defence chain, players work together to stop attackers from scoring. This game also helps attackers identify gaps on the wings and learn to execute opportunities. It develops an idea from Andrew Drayton who coaches Credition girls, Devon. MORE
10/1/2020 | Rugby drills
Here are two versions of the same game. In each one, it is a basic 2 v 1, but the angles of attack and defence keep changing depending on the target. It really challenges the role of the support player to put themselves in a good position to give the ball carrier options. MORE
10/22/2020 | Rugby drills
10/11/2020 | Passing & Handling
10/10/2020 | Rugby drills
10/9/2020 | Kicking & Catching
09/29/2020 | Kicking & Catching
09/26/2020 | Passing & Handling
The loop pulls in defenders and creates space for your runners. The passer follows his pass and takes a return pass on the outside of the receiver, thus creating an extra player in attack. It can be used in isolation or as part of a set piece move. MORE
A strike runner often makes his break because a decoy runner has drawn the defender. Decoy runners need to be credible and available to receive the pass. This session works on developing moves using decoy runners. MORE
Though the session is called “simple hands”, there is nothing easy about passing and catching under pressure. Your players will improve with focused practice in matchlike situations. The variety of angles and approaches they make forces players to concentrate on their technique under pressure. MORE
09/22/2020 | Email Newsletters
Evasion is a fundamental movement skill. Players use in pretty much all their activities, without necessarily focusing on the specific skills they need. Without becoming too bogged down in the technical requirements, you want to improve your players starting and stopping, balance, change of direction and acceleration. With that comes an awareness of space, time, teammates, the opposition and the ball. MORE
09/3/2020 | Email Newsletters
It's exciting that in England at the very least, contact training is back. However, with only 15 minutes allowed for contact training, you won't be wanting to waste any precious time. So, why not get the players warmed up for contact, without contact! How does that work? MORE
08/11/2020 | Return to play
Use this handling game as an ideal warm-up to enhance handling, as well as challenge the players to innovate. MORE
10/21/2020 | The Deep Dive with Si Nainsby
Si Nainby talks in-depth to Jamie Taylor PhD. Jamie is the former head of Academy at Leicester Tigers and now working with Grey Matters as a Senior Coach Developer and the English Institute of Sport as the coaching and curriculum lead. He is a Coach, Coach Developer and Researcher in Coaching Science with a particular focus on Talent Development. MORE
10/21/2020 | Rugby coaching
Top player developer Gary Townsend presents his e-learning course and templates so you can get the most from your conditioned games. Don't play games for the sake of playing games. Enhance your players' enjoyment, learning and skill development which Gary's structured, unstructured approach. CLICK HERE to go the e-learning course. MORE
10/18/2020 | Round-up Rodeo with Phil Llewellyn
Host Phil Llewellyn with guests review some of the many great podcasts, books, articles and webinars from the last week. This week's guests: Dan Abrahams, Freelance Sport and Exercise Psychologist and Dr Abbe Brady, Sport and Exercise Psychologist and Head of Psychology and Pedagogic Science at St Mary's University The team dissect the book The Long Win: The Search for a Better Way to Succeed by Cath Bishop. MORE
10/16/2020 | Rugby coaching
One score ahead and going into the last ten minutes. Should you have a plan “to close out the game” or should you be doing more of the same? MORE
10/20/2020
The basis for good defence always starts with strong tackling. However, the defenders also need to be connected as a group to ensure that the attacking options are closed down. Here are some defensive activities that you can run in training, even if you are not allowed to use tackling. All of them require good connections and decision-making. The attacking group will want to "win" and score, so the defensive group has to find creative ways to stop them. MORE
10/15/2020
Give your players lots of fun ways to improve their skills with simple games which have easy-to-define outcomes. Here are four to play around with. Though they are aimed at tag, you can easily adapt them for older and more experienced players. MORE
10/13/2020
Many of our sporting friends are facing tough times with lockdown rules reducing opportunities to play. However, if you can get out onto the pitch, but are perhaps limited to what you can do within your bubble, here are some ideas for sessions. MORE
“The boys have really enjoyed the drills from Rugby Coach Weekly. It's been great having them at my fingertips and every training session this season we tried new things, which I believe helped keep the boys interested and enthusiastic.”
Phil Hopkins, Perigueux, France
72 of the Game's Tactical Concepts in Simple, Plain Language MORE
With so much to cover when coaching young players, it can be a daunting task to know the basics... now there's help MORE
