Whether you won or lost this weekend, I expect you are thinking “there’s still so much to do”. No matter if you are just starting the season or mid-season, it always seems to be the case.
Here is the good news: all the other teams are in the same predicament.
The way forward? Balance your current needs with your future requirements. The current need is for instant improvements. This is important for both your side and for you. Your players want to see themselves as better players, and feel they are making progress.
What gives you this sort of instant success? Fitness is always a winner, as is building on your strengths. Both make sense. Fitter players, executing good skills better, will demonstrate improvement.
But you also have to consider building a team for the future – and developing tactics and techniques, which takes time. In which case you say the following to your team: “We need to improve our [INSERT HERE YOUR TECHNICAL/TACTICAL WEAKNESS], and will implement a plan to have to be better in [INSERT NUMBER] weeks’ time”.
Every week, you can build up the sophistication of that tactic and technique. Small doses, layer on layer of learning and testing. I did this twice in detail recently – once with a defensive system and once with our contact area.
For example, we had no proper ruck chain (a defensive system around the ruck) which could pressure the opposition on slow ball. I told them it would take time, and we built it up in stages. We spent ten to fifteen minutes each week – first on getting players into position, then on moving forward, then on arriving from different situations.
It worked in its full form after six weeks, the time when I said we would judge our progress. Patience paid off for developing higher order skills.
Fast line speed around the breakdown is crucial when trying to shut down an attack. Use this defensive activity to get organised quickly and put the opposition carriers under pressure. MORE
This session works on balance and reaction. Players enjoy the challenge of moving backward before racing forward with the ball or to tackle. There are lots of chances to use good communication and teamwork. MORE
Last week, I accidentally did something good. And then I realised that I should have been doing it from the start. I had set up an exercise which was based on an activity my son had suggested. I was so concerned with making the activity work, I became overly focused on one aspect. By the... MORE
Play games where there are 360 goal lines or multiple angles to score from, so every player in attack and defence has to be moving and communicating off-the-ball to help score or prevent scores. MORE
If you are able to train, then you will be aiming to improve your players’ skills and tactical appreciation around specific areas of the game. If you are in lockdown, it’s a chance to hone your session planning in readiness for your return. MORE
One of the most difficult things to teach a group of players is their ability to change from a defensive mindset to an attacking one effectively. Here is an activity that does just that. Make the players think that they need to defend as an organised unit and then be able to attack at pace when the ball is turned over. It’s not going to be easy. MORE
Here’s a headline that’s not going to get your players back to training quickly: Tackling and Fitness Training. However, as we focus on safety and reducing the exposure to a concussion, all the most recent data suggests we need to have better-prepared players. In particular, the fitter the player, the stronger they are, and more... MORE
Following on from last week’s defence exercise, replicate moving across to the pitch to defend from a slow or quick ruck. It’s a matching up then coming forward exercise. Defenders have to scan what’s in front of them whilst running across the pitch to get to the next ruck. They have to number up and adjust quickly. Once the ball is out, the outside defenders must close down the space in front of them. This session develops these ideas. MORE
Work on line-speed with specific targets for your defensive line as opposed to the normal “good line speed”. It will create pressure on the attacking line. Defensive cohesion is as important as making the tackles themselves. Work on line-speed and togetherness with this session. MORE
