1 of your 2 free articles
Coaching problem? Put it to our head coach Dan Cottrell.
Dear Dan,
Our Under-12s don’t seem to have the aggression required to get stuck into rucks and mauls.
They tend to stand off watching and when they do go in, only tend to walk in and lean on.
We have tried everything possible to build their energy levels and aggressive sides, however they are “too nice”, and don’t want to hurt the opposition..
Dear Dan,
I coach an U13 team in Western Australia.
I am trying to increase the urgency and physicality of my forwards at the breakdown.
We run a variety of intense ruck drills at training on Tuesdays and Thursdays, which the lads enjoy.
They seem to hit me and the other coaches hard when cleaning out but they back off come game time on a Saturday.
This could be because they are used to the coaches at training and are intimidated by the opposition during a game.
Out of eight, there are maybe three who work hard at the ruck, with good attitude and technique, while the remainder arrive relatively quickly but immediately lose interest in the contest.
The question is: How can I introduce more ’dog’ into my 12- and 13-year-olds?
I received these two emails within a few hours of each other, so this isn’t an isolated situation. However, it’s not a problem, either.
Up to the age of 17 or 18, boys grow at very different rates, physically and mentally. It’s likely that the more ’aggressive’ teams you face have a number of boys who are ahead of the curve.
Also, the general make-up of a team at U12s and U13s tends to rely on two or three boys leading the way in terms of aggression - if they are the better players, the rest tend to follow. What makes them more ’aggressive’ is very much due to environmental factors outside your control.
For example, the second-born child tends to be more abrasive than the first. If the boy is a little brother, that adds to this. Parents make a difference in this matter, too.
You can quickly see that your chances of increasing their aggressiveness in terms of being more competitive in the contact area are vastly reduced. So what can you do?
Don’t overdo the encouragement, big speeches or other motivational tools to make the players play harder.
It’s likely to have the reverse effect and make the players less likely to want to improve their contact skills.
Keep developing their contact skills in an appropriate way – no coach involvement in holding pads or bags.
Build up the intensity in sessions, from walking to full-on contact. Keep the distances down to reduce speeds, so players concentrate on their technique and not on whether they will get hurt.
Having seen lots of teams develop over these age groups in the past 20-plus years, I can safely say that the best-coached teams stick together and become better.
This is rarely the case with the teams filled with aggressive players who are coached to win by aggression.
Accept some players will fall by the wayside. Rugby isn’t for all. It takes a sort of inner strength that no coach or parent can force on a player. However, support and positive reinforcement do work.
Get the contact balance right in training, with opportunities to be successful in the contact area, as well for avoiding it.
But let the players discover what works for them. Do this in small-sided games where there’s a small consequence of making mistakes but a big boost for being successful. Perhaps overload the defence but only allow them to make low tackles.
In a recent survey 89% of subscribers said Rugby Coach Weekly makes them more confident, 91% said Rugby Coach Weekly makes them a more effective coach and 93% said Rugby Coach Weekly makes them more inspired.
Get Weekly Inspiration
All the latest techniques and approaches
Rugby Coach Weekly offers proven and easy to use rugby drills, coaching sessions, practice plans, small-sided games, warm-ups, training tips and advice.
We've been at the cutting edge of rugby coaching since we launched in 2005, creating resources for the grassroots youth coach, following best practice from around the world and insights from the professional game.