EXPERT SESSIONS AND ADVICE FROM QUALIFIED AND EXPERIENCED GRASSROOTS RUGBY COACHES
It’s worth coaching rugby kicking skills as early as possible, even if your young players are not allowed to kick during games yet. By the time kicking is introduced into the game, the youngsters will have a well-developed set of core skills and a basic tactical understanding of when to kick. Use the following rugby coaching tips and drills to help. And, of course, any catching drills are going to be worthwhile as they’ll soon be faced with some up and unders too!
in Kicking & Catching, Rugby drills, Scrums & Lineouts, Small-sided games
Use a simple game of touch with some modifications to the restarts to work on both kick-offs and lineouts. In both cases the catcher should aim to get off the ground to take the ball. MORE
in Kicking & Catching, Rugby drills
Help your team’s kick-off chase and receipt with this fun Dutch game – it’s suitable for players aged 12 and above. Dutch grassroots' Ritchard Kelliher created it to reinforce his core messages on attack. MORE
in Kicking & Catching, Rugby drills
Work on counter-attack plays to use when returning long kicks. And then have a play to use after the first ruck from a counter – it will help you exploit weak links as they race into place to defend. MORE
in Kicking & Catching, Practice plans
All players may need to catch a high ball - forwards from kick-offs, backs from open play. The principles of “fielding” include being aware of your support players and thinking what to do next. This session builds on those principles. MORE
in Kicking & Catching, Rugby drills
Use these three drills to build an attacking pattern to counter-attack from a kick to a winger. Note the running lines and how and when the ball is moved to create space. Finally, put this into game-related situations. MORE
in Kicking & Catching, Practice plans
Avoid aimless kicking. Make players kick the ball at a target, preferably where the opposition is not. This session is a unit skills session for backs. MORE
in Core skills, Kicking & Catching
Kicking the ball doesn’t have to mean conceding possession. In the final part of our series on catching, we look at how to win back the ball from two main types of kick – the box kick and “chip and chase”. MORE
in Kicking & Catching, Rugby drills
Time your chase and catch from a box kick, depending on the skills of your 9. Whatever the hang time and distance of the kick, the chaser should be able to challenge for the ball at the end of his sprint. MORE
in Kicking & Catching, Rugby drills
Practise the skills needed to win back your own kicks. The chip over the top can make a defence think twice about rushing up, with the kicker or a chaser able to regain the ball behind the line and in space. MORE
Help your backs communicate, cover and then compete for the high ball under pressure. Creating match-like scenarios develops their ability to identify which areas to cover when receiving kicks. MORE
