Heads up rugby means the players make decisions on what’s in front of them rather than play to a pattern. We would like our players to do this more often because it allows them to exploit weaknesses in defence.
But, it’s not as easy as just playing with your head up. Your players need to:
Look ahead and anticipate what’s going to happen.
Take the right action to exploit a weakness.
Do it collectively.
It all starts with:
The confidence to try out skills
Making mistakes
Seeing what works and when.
You can do this, for example, through activities that build a technique from the basics into a game situation, or in game where there are opportunities to anticipate and then find success.
Here are some exercises and games from our Rugby Coach Weekly website to try out with your players. It includes the debate on whether you need a defensive system or can you play heads up?
“The supporting player starts in front of the ball carrier, while the defender has his back to the attack. When you shout play, with the supporting player walking forward and the defender out of position, the players will have to think quickly to come up with winning solutions.” MORE
Develop ball carriers with some grit and determination to power through the tackle situation. If they don’t break the tackle, at least they provide a good target for their support players. This session creates ways to test their mettle. MORE
Create a fatiguing decision-making exercise for your players. In this 4 v 2 game, the players have 90 seconds to score as many tries as possible but can choose which line to attack each time. MORE
Understand how to create then take advantage of 3 v 2s by isolating and splitting the two defenders. The chaotic starts mean more options and decisions for all the players involved. MORE
Heads up rugby means the players make decisions on what’s in front of them rather than play to a pattern. We would like our players to do this more often because it allows them to exploit weaknesses in defence.
