Under 11s is a year of consolidation for most players.
Some unions will introduce some form of kicking (Kick to target) and there may be a contested strike in the scrums. However the majority of the game will be unchanged in terms of new skills.
Your approach should be to keep working on the core skills of handling, tackling and contact, which all include footwork skills.
Though you might employ some tactics, the underlying themes should be:
In defence, it is better to play games to work on line organisation.
Ideally you will have a good line at every opportunity. Defence drills rarely work at this age though. It’s better to make the situations game-like.
Also, avoid allocating positions. You will find players will naturally graduate to some positions, which is fine. Instead, concentrate on all the players being able to pass, ruck and tackle.
Finally, as emphasised in the Under 10s, practise good body positions going into contact. Don’t spend any time on “mauling” if your union rules allows mauling. Once a player is caught in a maul, there’s not much chance of either quick ball or even getting the ball back in some cases. Leave mauling to when there’s lineout lifting.
Develop better footwork skills to get close to the ball carrier, plus good teamwork in this defensive reaction activity.
This session builds a better defence by getting pairs of players to work together. MORE
Inspired by the work of Nick Hart, a headteacher and author of the blog,Thisismyclassroom, here is a “scaffolding” approach to teaching tackling. Scaffolding is where you build support around a task as it is introduced and built up. You then take away the scaffolding as the player becomes confident and competent. It was first coined... MORE
Coaching 2 v 1s to young players can be a tough task. Why not try to coach them these skills through games only? How many 2 v 1s happen in a senior rugby match, let alone young players’ rugby? In the purest sense of just two attackers facing one defender, not many times in senior... MORE
The classic 2 v 1 exercise doesn’t work well with young players. Don’t give up on it though. Try out these ideas to work on this crucial decision-making area of the game.
A 2 v 1 exercise has the ball carrier fixing the defender before passing to a support player. However, for young players, this doesn’t work well. MORE
Challenge players to react to the chance to have an extra player in attack and how to defend against it. It’s a quick game, so decisions will need sharp action.
No match has unequal numbers unless there’s a yellow card. But sometimes the attack has an overload as a tackler is temporarily indisposed. Replicate that with this game. The “changer” will be doing most of the thinking.
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Fast recycling players is a feature of any top team. It means that players are in a position to take the ball from the next breakdown. If they are ready, they can attack with pace.
When players reposition themselves after a set-piece or a ruck, they have to read the game and know their roles. A better understanding of this will enhance your team’s attacking cohesion. MORE
Encourage your players to use good footwork in small spaces by avoiding contact. These two fun activities are excellent for warming up body and mind.
Though rugby is a contact game, avoiding it is a core skill. There are no set techniques because each player will have their own style. Let them develop it in these two activities. MORE
Develop your players’ ability to work in pairs in attack to beat defenders or offload under pressure to a support player. A great skills breakout for Ready4Rugby training.
The ball carrier should always aim to go forward first and then beat the defender in front of him. If he can’t then he should be aware of his support players and offload the ball before or during contact. MORE
Develop your players’ go-forward skills with evasion in this competitive scenario. It’s easy to set up and you can add lots of variations.
Even though some of the players will “cheat” by not exactly stepping to the side of the cones, their swerves and go-forward will help them replicate these skills in a match situation. MORE
The switch pass is notoriously difficult to coach. Try out this activity to let your players develop the right sort of skill. There are lots of moving parts in a switch pass which mean, even at the top level, they can be difficult to execute. This activity gives the players more awareness of their running lines and potential passes. MORE
