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Ruck decision-making
Editor Dan Cottrell adds further context to two sessions.
To go or not to go to the next ruck is a constant question most forwards face.
Too many players and the ball is slowed down by the mass of bodies, and the next breakdown is not well supported; or, forwards hang back and you lack numbers.
However, this is not just a problem for forwards. All players need to support at rucks, and that means backs doing their fair share.
But forwards make more of a difference in the physical contest and you want to keep your backs on their feet to run at gaps if possible.
Accept that some forwards will be better ruckers than others, in part because they make more breakdowns.
So, don’t get too obsessive with running complicated patterns of plays with ’pods’ of forwards clearing out defined rucks. It is better to make players aware of what is in front of them so they can decide whether to ruck or not.
There are three ways to help your players know when to ruck:
1. ’Upskill’ their rucking
Create confidence to make a difference at a ruck and, therefore, be motivated to do so.
Sean Holley uses ruck circles (see page 4) to help players assess their right course of action.
2. Improve their match awareness
Show them footage of their matches and ask them to identify where they should be/have been, or freeze a practice match and show players where they are at key times and where they should have been.
3. More live situations
Use training games where players need to decide whether to ruck or not.
The Wallabies talk about ’contact motivation’ in their preparation for tests. Help players be ready to ruck, confident to ruck and see the value of rucking. That will improve their ability to know when to ruck.
This continuous rucking exercise enhances player ability to get back into the game and ruck effectively.
Do you know the ruck laws?
A ruck is formed when an attacker is over the ball on the ground at the tackle. They don’t have to be in contact with an opposition player. There is an offside line across the pitch.
In theory, the attacking player isn’t making contact with their tackled team-mate, so their hands are free and their head isn’t below their shoulders. In practice, that might look a little different!
Unexpected defenders
Defensive systems around the ruck are pretty standard.
The first three players next to one side of the ruck have specific roles, which we can call the ’heart’ of the defence.
Outside these players, the roles become less defined. Once we reach the fifth and sixth defender, they are not so likely to be involved in the thrust of the defensive system.
If you watch footage of games, you will see they often do not come forward as fast as the other players, or keep their shape.
To exploit these players, we need to engage and hold the first four defenders, and then move the ball into the spaces in front of the fifth and sixth defender.
These defenders don’t expect to make tackles, because the heart of the defence makes them the most. Instead, they will make a token effort to come forward and then can become isolated if they are attacked.
In this article, Peter Russell – who has coached in the Premiership, New Zealand and Japan – explains that you need to engage the inside defenders by sometimes taking contact.
He knows that players need to take some contact, but not every time. It needs to happen in a controlled manner. That keeps the ’heart’ of the defence honest, because they know that, sometimes, they need to stop players coming down their channel.
Once engaged, to attack away from the ’heart’, or the defender who’s not expecting to defend, you have to be able to pass quickly and hold inside defenders with straight running.
To outwit the unexpected defender, the attacker can pass short inside or outside that defender.
Therefore, you need to have players who are ready to run off that crucial attacker, just like they would off the 10.
The pass itself doesn’t need to be particularly clever. It could be just a short pass.
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