It’s not always easy to get young players to embrace contact which is why we’ve spent so much time devising and testing contact drills that will help your players grow in confidence. Use them alongside our tackling drills to develop a team of players that are comfortable making and taking contact.
A bread and butter session working on beating an organised defence which is right in front of the ball carrier.
Sometimes there’s no choice but to go through the defence. MORE
Plan for decision-making at rucks. First three sessions for technical, then a four-week planner and then four specific decision-making ruck attack sessions. MORE
Keep your players balanced and stable in the contact situation by getting them to “bump, pop, rip”. The “bump” is a controlled drive into the contact area, so the ball carrier is never off balance. He can then pop the ball to a team mate or have it ripped away. The pop is more dynamic, the rip more secure. MORE
Being aggressive in the tackle and presenting the ball well will create quicker ball at the ruck. This session focuses on how your players take contact if they can’t avoid it. Winning the contest at the breakdown is a fundamental piece of your core unit skills. MORE
Sometimes I still have to pinch myself and realise we have missed 18 months of competitive contact rugby. And watching the attritional British and Irish Lions Tour recently got me thinking about how we as coaches can look to prepare our youth players for the new season.
I have put together some non-contact tips on how I would work to improve the tackle technique for my players. MORE
This session concentrates on attacking the space behind the defence. The players will work on bursting through the gaps and then popping off to the supporting players. It shouldn’t just be seen as an attacking session though, because you can improve tackling and defensive skills at the same time. MORE
Work on attacking the edges of the ruck defence. That means not attacking next to the ruck, but the area often less well-defended two players out.
Normal ruck defence is set with two defenders close to the ruck. Attack outside these players. MORE
This session thrives on the odd directions a rugby ball takes when it rolls along the ground and how the players react to it.
It will improve footwork, vision, communication and reactions skills, as well as making for an alternative method of training. MORE
Though you want to avoid defenders, sometimes you will have to take contact. Develop ways to retain possession at the ruck and after by keeping the ball carrier active in the tackle.
Defences will aim to force turnovers if the ball carrier can’t release a pass. If the ball carrier works hard to twist, turn and spin during the tackle, they will become less of a target. MORE
