Grunthos
Kennel Enthusiast
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- May 6, 2018
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Part 3:
Gearing up!
1: Mouthguard
Compulsory for training and games in all grades from U6 to Golden oldies!
There are many brands and types, from the dentist, fitted variety going for one hundred plus dollars to the $8 K-Mart cheapy. All will help keep the Ivory in the player's head. There can be nothing worse than losing an adult tooth just as it comes through.
Mouthguards must be properly fitted and comfortable to wear and must also stay in mouths! Some players remove it at every other opportunity; you can’t play properly with the thing in your hand. I have seen balls dropped, tackles missed and games lost all because of this very avoidable and very silly mistake.
Drill it into their heads!
It’s a good idea to have a new reserve mouth guard or two in the runner’s bag and in mum and dad’s car just in case.
2: Headgear
Should be compulsory as far as I’m concerned!
I have seen ahead clash of players and the boy not wearing headgear being laid out! It not only can lessen the risk of concussion but can also protect against bloody scalp injuries as well.
3: Shoulder pads
Optional, however, the protection offered can mean the difference between a shoulder injury and playing on, they also add to the confidence of the player when it
comes to tackling.
At the time of writing, Rugby union-approved pads do not have a chest guard.
4: Shin guards
Again optional but not really necessary, probably only of use to forwards in the ruck, mall and scrum.
All of the above should be approved for Rugby Union, some pads, etc that are used in league are illegal in our game, Silver Fern, Canterbury or anything with “ARU” on it should be ok.
5: Water bottle
A must-have! Proper hydration before, during and after training and games is very important.
Sports drinks like Staminade and Gatorade etc are of great help but plenty of good old-fashioned H2o is just as good.
Avoid all gimmicky “energy” drinks at all times, Red Bull etc.
These are dangerously heavy with caffeine and packed with sugar etc and are made for the nit-wit who wants to keep “partying on” till 4.30 in the morning with the hope they will have just enough energy to get themselves laid before falling into a coma!
They are not for sportsmen and women during a game, are very bad for the teeth and potentially VERY dangerous as they can raise the heart rate to perilously high levels!
6: Boots
This is a vitally important piece of kit and must be 100% to get right!
The boot should offer comfort and support and yet be as light in weight as possible.
Forwards need long sprigs to get a good grip when in the scrum, ruck and mall.
The faster backs need shorter sprigs or a grid pattern that offers good lateral support that will allow sharper turns and changes in direction, Soccer boots are usually good for backs.
The team’s kicker/s should wear soccer boots.
Anything with a rounded or bulbous nose must be avoided as the ball can go in almost any direction.
Give careful thought to the choice of boots as it will make a difference to the player’s performance.
Let’s look at training:
Always use the “Kiss” method.
Keep-It-Simple-Stupid! and “If you train like rubbish you’ll play like rubbish!”
Remember, coaching is exactly like playing, if you go in half-hearted and poorly prepared you’ll only get smashed.
I don’t touch on scrums, ruck and malls, line-outs and the vital “May-day call” etc. There are plenty of good manuals and uploads on the net on the subjects; this is just some general ideas I have on some of the fundamentals, passing and defense etc.
Make sure your OH&S (Smart Rugby etc) qualifications are up to date, keep in mind that no one is permitted to coach or even run water without being accredited.
Have a training plan in place, what did the team do right and wrong, and focus the session accordingly, and for goodness sake, no matter how hard or hot your day was; do not drink alcohol before the session!
You are a role model and there is no faster way to lose a team's respect and confidence and parents' support than coming to training smelling of grog and/or cigarettes! Wait till after the session and preferably when you’re home before imbibing in that “cleansing ale” or lighting up.
The most popular training day seems to be Thursday, no arguments here however when you get up to the U15 age groups and above you may find that some of your team may have after school work commitments and won’t be able to commit to training so I suggest senior teams should have there run on a Wednesdays etc.
Teamwork:
There is no “I” in the word team!
Every team has one or two or more if you really lucky.
I refer to the gifted player, the one that can see an opportunity and react accordingly with a deft pass or a sweet side-step or that clever bit of play that leaves the opposition grasping at thin air as the ball is planted under the sticks!
Or he could be just the big fat kid the other side is all afraid to tackle.
The advice here is, don’t rely on him/them to much!
It’s teamwork that’s vital for the squad’s success, not the talent, size, or speed of an individual player or two.
A good coach encourages his players to believe in themselves and their teammates.
What’s great (but can cause disciplinary problems) is when you have a bunch of schoolmates playing together, now don’t get me wrong, having good friends playing is what it’s all about, however, they can mess around at training and exclude others from the play, for example, the player who found himself put nicely into the clear but insisted on trying to pass to his mate instead of a closer support player and the try went begging!
There’s “playgroup” and there’s Rugby, let them know their responsibilities to the rest of the team, you want them to work together not play together if that makes any sense.
Recognizing Talent:
Relying on a team or player's natural talent will get you only so far but no further!
Ok, so you have a gifted player, you remember the one. “The player that can see an opportunity and react accordingly with a deft pass or a sweet side-step or that clever bit of play that leaves the opposition grasping at thin air” etc, that’s the one. So how do we nurture him and develop his talents?
Believe me, don’t bank on individual player’s talent to get you through week in week out the whole team must be skilled and drilled thoroughly or you will never win the big games.
I attended an elimination finals game at the business end of a season in which one team had 5-6 brilliant individuals and the other seemingly had none but were very well drilled, guess who won convincingly.
There were a few disappointed players and stunned parents and coaches that day I can tell you! (Tee-Hee…)
The other big one is what I call “A” or “Rep” grade obsession.
Some mums, dads, and players are totally fixated with playing in “A” grade and district representative teams at all times and will chop and change clubs and teams, sometimes even mid-season to achieve this goal!
This obsession is usually Ego driven and/or parents vicariously living out their sporting fantasies through their children or sometimes even the hope that great success on the field may one day be a way out of financial problems.
Yep, that’s right! If the kid can snag a contract somewhere he/she could pay the mortgage! Don’t laugh this does happen!
This is silly and just plain dumb, to say the least, and can put a ridiculous amount of pressure on young shoulders!
Though you should always aim high and expect the best from the kids, if it becomes an obsession then that’s never healthy.
I had a very good player, a true natural athlete, in a very competitive U15s team who started the season exceptionally well but because he didn’t get picked for the state team his parents took him out of the squad. What sort of a message are mum and dad sending their son?
“It’s all right dear, if you don’t get what you want, just up and leave!”
His main problem was that Mum and dad, putting it very simply “Shat in his nest!”
His name became mud throughout the clubs in our area and he’s not been seen or heard from playing rugby or league anywhere for that matter.
One interesting thing I have noted over the years is that a “superstar” in the junior ranks doesn’t always become a superstar in the senior.
The “Plodders,” the guys who aren’t overly talented or natural athletes who always turn up to training and do their best, seem to make up the ranks of the first grade teams… why is this so? The answer is attitude!
I have seen really talented players “stooge” around at training and sometimes even make fun of the lesser lights efforts instead of concentrating on sharpening their own performance, if this carries through into senior levels, guess who improved their skills and gets to play first grade!
Another point that must be made is that when the boys finish their junior football and line up for colts etc at their local club, they will be trailing on equal terms with other players who may never have seen a rugby ball in their lives.
Playing reps and “A” grade is no guarantee that you will be in the top side at the senior level.
Remember the maxim mentioned before.
“A good player trains and plays a good game whenever he wants’ to.
A great player trains and plays a great game when he doesn’t want to!”
Eye’s and Ears please gentlemen!
“If you fail to plan you are planning to fail!”
You must have a training plan and some kind of structure for practice, there are no set rules and there are lots of good information on coaching rugby etc on the net but the following is a simple guideline on how the average training session could go; A warm-up and stretch is most important. Talk about last week’s game.
Follow on with ball work and then when the team is warmed up get into the defensive drills, ruck and mall, line-out etc. If you have a co-coach split the team into forwards and backs and train them separately then run them together as a team.
A game of tackle or bullrush is great to get the skills up and to finish the last five minutes or so of the session, don’t use it to fill in time just because you have run
out of ideas!
Fun, variety, and honesty is the way to go, don’t be to dower or demanding, particularly with younger players, remember they are there for fun, not playgroup fun but disciplined rugby/league fun.
To me, there is no such thing as a “light” training run where you don’t need to bring a mouthguard or headgear etc.
All training should have a physical element attached to it and even if you haven’t planed a tackle session, accidents can still happen, insist that the team comes fully kitted out with their protective gear at all times!
Putting it very simply, the secret to winning games even grand finals is to do the basic things better than the opposition.
The tackles don’t need to be so hard as to rattle the teeth loos or put the ball carrier into traction for six months (though this is preferable and great to watch Tee-Hee) just effective enough to put the guy to ground quickly. The passes don’t need to be at 100Kph just catchable etc etc if you train the basics into the team and have them do it well, success will follow.
Forwards & backs:
The forwards must always strive to be a cohesive unit working with one mind and purpose and come to think of it, your backs must always be a cohesive unit working with one mind and purpose… Yeah ok, Uber coach, how do we pull that one off?!
Getting your backs up:
Kids love making up moves, this is good and should be encouraged and implemented when the time is right, however, to start with it’s a good idea to just get the simple fundamental things done right before we even consider the great convoluted plays that require superhuman speed, agility, and advanced mind-reading skills as well as an incompetent opposition.
To pass, to catch, to tackle, to ruck, to mall and to communicate reliably with each other is what we want to aim for!
Drill the players in calling for the ball. The ball carrier should also look at the receiver before he passes, this simple habit will ultimately make for a slick backline and forward pack.
Practice simple wraparounds and inside passes, backing up the ball carrier etc and low and behold the exciting plays will follow.
All the clever-dick moves and trickery must be backed up by solid basic fundamentals!
Stepping on stepping in…
All young (and sometimes not so young) players seem to have an inability to see their outside men and support players, and all players for some reason think that if they run back inside (into the opposing team’s forward pack who is following) they are somehow going to weave or crash their way through unscathed and score a magnificent solo try??!!
I tell my players, that if you feel like ducking back inside instead of passing then that’s the exact moment they should pass!
Once the penny drops and they put this into practice, the tries will come.
The only time they should step back inside is if they find themselves getting to close to the side line or “isolated” and heading back into their forwards is the only way to keep the team in control of the ball, hopefully.
Trying to get some sort of Advantage.
Teaching them about the “Advantage line” is very important.
Can you imagine a line (the Advantage line) that goes from sideline to sideline through the center of the ball?
Now that line moves up and down the field with the ball.
The object is to drive or surge over the line, when balls lose on the ground in a ruck, thus gaining the advantage or driving the opposition back if ball hasn’t been released as in a mall.
This can be demonstrated thus:
Put the ball on the ground and describe the imaginary line running through it. Step over the ball and explain that the only way the opposition can get it with out incurring a penalty is to push you back or to rake it back with their feet.
You can then add; releasing the ball, lay back, pop-up, and coming “through the gate” ruck and mall etc.
You must drill your backs in aggressive ruck and mall technique as well as they will need to hold the fort until the forwards arrive. Theirs nothing worse than watching one of your wingers being worked over by the opposition while one of his fellow backs just stands there only meters away yelling at the forwards to get there finger out and come and do “their” job!
It’s very important to coach the team to be as intense and determined in this area as they are in there tackling!
Slow, timid or half-hearted rucking and mauling will never win you a game!
You can’t afford to have players hanging around at the back of the ruck as if they were waiting for a written invitation to join in!
They must drive in and surge over the ball (through the all-important gate) and stay on their feet at all times.
The more aggressively the team attacks in this area the more likely they will dominate the opposition and win the game, (controlled) aggression is the key!
Defensively speaking:
What’s the one thing a Rugby/League player must have that a Soccer player rarely needs? COURAGE!
Once they reach grade (usually U10) and begin to play full contact Rugby/League is where you must be at your best as a coach.
The team needs to know how to make a tackle and how to take a tackle.
It is the coach’s job to give the individual player the skills and confidence he needs to play with determination and courage.
“Get out there and smash em!” doesn’t mean a bloody thing unless they know how to.
First, read up on the latest training methods and know them and full safety gear must be worn always, shoulder pads, mouth guard, and preferably headgear, nothing puts a kid off and makes them tackling shy faster than getting hurt early on.
Start slow, get the boys to do everything at a walking pace, concentrating on their technique.
Then move on to the ever-popular tackle bag.
The coach should also carry a hit shield on his arm for these drills.
Now rugby is a game of movement and seldom does an opposing player has the jolly good manners to hold still so you can pound him into the ground, so;
It’s a good idea to start with a static target to perfect the team’s technique and then we make things interesting by moving the bag;
▪towards the player, representing a player charging the line,
▪away from the player, representing a fleeing target and the classic tackle from behind,
▪moving the bag left or right, fast and slow etc giving the boy a moving and random target.
Once the bag is down that’s not the end of the tackle, the boy should jump to his feet go “through the gate” and drive you off hitting the shield.
The same drills can be done with two players; this is to simulate clearing out and driving off. One boy makes the tackle while the other then drives you off, he is then joined by the original tackler and on the command “break” etc they both go back jump over the bag on the ground and both drive-in making sure to “come through the gate.”
Ok, it’s now time for a “live fire” drill, or taking on a real player.
Have the team line up and pick a tackler, pass the ball to a player of similar size (and aggression if possible to start with) and tell him to get past the defender, and watch the fun.
A couple of Smartys or M&Ms to the winner is a good incentive.
Also, get the ball carrier to practice laying back or popping up the ball if they are successfully tackled.
Now some players are good defenders and others not, but it’s a general rule of thumb that the more aggressively you play and defend the less likely you will be hurt! Teach them this!
A player who is timid in defense should receive personal one-on-one training and be encouraged to try to attempt, “The perfect tackle.”
The object is for him to make the hit, not the other way round.
To take a deep breath concentrate on their technique and give it their best shot, this will take a lot of patience and encouragement on the part of the coach but once the boy achieves this particularly in a game he should be Ok from then on.
As for ruck & mall, scrums and line-outs etc read your manuals go to the coaching seminars hit the net, and ask advice from other coaches.
Practice makes perfect.
The Captain:
In U6 to U9 every one should have a go.
However, in U10 and up you must choose someone with a level head who can lead and inspire and keep on-field discipline and communicate with the ref and his team when called upon.
This is no easy task for the average 9, 10 or 11 year old but you will need to find someone.
He Who Kicks the ball:
In U6 to U9 give everyone a go.
From U10 up it must be the best man for the job, it’s a good idea to have “shootouts” at training to see who the best goal kicker is and a game of forcing’s back to see who has the best boot in general play etc.
Graded games are not the place to give someone a go at goal kicking; you must use the best man for the job always.
This must be explained to the team and the non-kickers encouraged to practice and improve their skills.
More tomorrow,
Grunthos
Gearing up!
1: Mouthguard
Compulsory for training and games in all grades from U6 to Golden oldies!
There are many brands and types, from the dentist, fitted variety going for one hundred plus dollars to the $8 K-Mart cheapy. All will help keep the Ivory in the player's head. There can be nothing worse than losing an adult tooth just as it comes through.
Mouthguards must be properly fitted and comfortable to wear and must also stay in mouths! Some players remove it at every other opportunity; you can’t play properly with the thing in your hand. I have seen balls dropped, tackles missed and games lost all because of this very avoidable and very silly mistake.
Drill it into their heads!
It’s a good idea to have a new reserve mouth guard or two in the runner’s bag and in mum and dad’s car just in case.
2: Headgear
Should be compulsory as far as I’m concerned!
I have seen ahead clash of players and the boy not wearing headgear being laid out! It not only can lessen the risk of concussion but can also protect against bloody scalp injuries as well.
3: Shoulder pads
Optional, however, the protection offered can mean the difference between a shoulder injury and playing on, they also add to the confidence of the player when it
comes to tackling.
At the time of writing, Rugby union-approved pads do not have a chest guard.
4: Shin guards
Again optional but not really necessary, probably only of use to forwards in the ruck, mall and scrum.
All of the above should be approved for Rugby Union, some pads, etc that are used in league are illegal in our game, Silver Fern, Canterbury or anything with “ARU” on it should be ok.
5: Water bottle
A must-have! Proper hydration before, during and after training and games is very important.
Sports drinks like Staminade and Gatorade etc are of great help but plenty of good old-fashioned H2o is just as good.
Avoid all gimmicky “energy” drinks at all times, Red Bull etc.
These are dangerously heavy with caffeine and packed with sugar etc and are made for the nit-wit who wants to keep “partying on” till 4.30 in the morning with the hope they will have just enough energy to get themselves laid before falling into a coma!
They are not for sportsmen and women during a game, are very bad for the teeth and potentially VERY dangerous as they can raise the heart rate to perilously high levels!
6: Boots
This is a vitally important piece of kit and must be 100% to get right!
The boot should offer comfort and support and yet be as light in weight as possible.
Forwards need long sprigs to get a good grip when in the scrum, ruck and mall.
The faster backs need shorter sprigs or a grid pattern that offers good lateral support that will allow sharper turns and changes in direction, Soccer boots are usually good for backs.
The team’s kicker/s should wear soccer boots.
Anything with a rounded or bulbous nose must be avoided as the ball can go in almost any direction.
Give careful thought to the choice of boots as it will make a difference to the player’s performance.
Let’s look at training:
Always use the “Kiss” method.
Keep-It-Simple-Stupid! and “If you train like rubbish you’ll play like rubbish!”
Remember, coaching is exactly like playing, if you go in half-hearted and poorly prepared you’ll only get smashed.
I don’t touch on scrums, ruck and malls, line-outs and the vital “May-day call” etc. There are plenty of good manuals and uploads on the net on the subjects; this is just some general ideas I have on some of the fundamentals, passing and defense etc.
Make sure your OH&S (Smart Rugby etc) qualifications are up to date, keep in mind that no one is permitted to coach or even run water without being accredited.
Have a training plan in place, what did the team do right and wrong, and focus the session accordingly, and for goodness sake, no matter how hard or hot your day was; do not drink alcohol before the session!
You are a role model and there is no faster way to lose a team's respect and confidence and parents' support than coming to training smelling of grog and/or cigarettes! Wait till after the session and preferably when you’re home before imbibing in that “cleansing ale” or lighting up.
The most popular training day seems to be Thursday, no arguments here however when you get up to the U15 age groups and above you may find that some of your team may have after school work commitments and won’t be able to commit to training so I suggest senior teams should have there run on a Wednesdays etc.
Teamwork:
There is no “I” in the word team!
Every team has one or two or more if you really lucky.
I refer to the gifted player, the one that can see an opportunity and react accordingly with a deft pass or a sweet side-step or that clever bit of play that leaves the opposition grasping at thin air as the ball is planted under the sticks!
Or he could be just the big fat kid the other side is all afraid to tackle.
The advice here is, don’t rely on him/them to much!
It’s teamwork that’s vital for the squad’s success, not the talent, size, or speed of an individual player or two.
A good coach encourages his players to believe in themselves and their teammates.
What’s great (but can cause disciplinary problems) is when you have a bunch of schoolmates playing together, now don’t get me wrong, having good friends playing is what it’s all about, however, they can mess around at training and exclude others from the play, for example, the player who found himself put nicely into the clear but insisted on trying to pass to his mate instead of a closer support player and the try went begging!
There’s “playgroup” and there’s Rugby, let them know their responsibilities to the rest of the team, you want them to work together not play together if that makes any sense.
Recognizing Talent:
Relying on a team or player's natural talent will get you only so far but no further!
Ok, so you have a gifted player, you remember the one. “The player that can see an opportunity and react accordingly with a deft pass or a sweet side-step or that clever bit of play that leaves the opposition grasping at thin air” etc, that’s the one. So how do we nurture him and develop his talents?
Believe me, don’t bank on individual player’s talent to get you through week in week out the whole team must be skilled and drilled thoroughly or you will never win the big games.
I attended an elimination finals game at the business end of a season in which one team had 5-6 brilliant individuals and the other seemingly had none but were very well drilled, guess who won convincingly.
There were a few disappointed players and stunned parents and coaches that day I can tell you! (Tee-Hee…)
The other big one is what I call “A” or “Rep” grade obsession.
Some mums, dads, and players are totally fixated with playing in “A” grade and district representative teams at all times and will chop and change clubs and teams, sometimes even mid-season to achieve this goal!
This obsession is usually Ego driven and/or parents vicariously living out their sporting fantasies through their children or sometimes even the hope that great success on the field may one day be a way out of financial problems.
Yep, that’s right! If the kid can snag a contract somewhere he/she could pay the mortgage! Don’t laugh this does happen!
This is silly and just plain dumb, to say the least, and can put a ridiculous amount of pressure on young shoulders!
Though you should always aim high and expect the best from the kids, if it becomes an obsession then that’s never healthy.
I had a very good player, a true natural athlete, in a very competitive U15s team who started the season exceptionally well but because he didn’t get picked for the state team his parents took him out of the squad. What sort of a message are mum and dad sending their son?
“It’s all right dear, if you don’t get what you want, just up and leave!”
His main problem was that Mum and dad, putting it very simply “Shat in his nest!”
His name became mud throughout the clubs in our area and he’s not been seen or heard from playing rugby or league anywhere for that matter.
One interesting thing I have noted over the years is that a “superstar” in the junior ranks doesn’t always become a superstar in the senior.
The “Plodders,” the guys who aren’t overly talented or natural athletes who always turn up to training and do their best, seem to make up the ranks of the first grade teams… why is this so? The answer is attitude!
I have seen really talented players “stooge” around at training and sometimes even make fun of the lesser lights efforts instead of concentrating on sharpening their own performance, if this carries through into senior levels, guess who improved their skills and gets to play first grade!
Another point that must be made is that when the boys finish their junior football and line up for colts etc at their local club, they will be trailing on equal terms with other players who may never have seen a rugby ball in their lives.
Playing reps and “A” grade is no guarantee that you will be in the top side at the senior level.
Remember the maxim mentioned before.
“A good player trains and plays a good game whenever he wants’ to.
A great player trains and plays a great game when he doesn’t want to!”
Eye’s and Ears please gentlemen!
“If you fail to plan you are planning to fail!”
You must have a training plan and some kind of structure for practice, there are no set rules and there are lots of good information on coaching rugby etc on the net but the following is a simple guideline on how the average training session could go; A warm-up and stretch is most important. Talk about last week’s game.
Follow on with ball work and then when the team is warmed up get into the defensive drills, ruck and mall, line-out etc. If you have a co-coach split the team into forwards and backs and train them separately then run them together as a team.
A game of tackle or bullrush is great to get the skills up and to finish the last five minutes or so of the session, don’t use it to fill in time just because you have run
out of ideas!
Fun, variety, and honesty is the way to go, don’t be to dower or demanding, particularly with younger players, remember they are there for fun, not playgroup fun but disciplined rugby/league fun.
To me, there is no such thing as a “light” training run where you don’t need to bring a mouthguard or headgear etc.
All training should have a physical element attached to it and even if you haven’t planed a tackle session, accidents can still happen, insist that the team comes fully kitted out with their protective gear at all times!
Putting it very simply, the secret to winning games even grand finals is to do the basic things better than the opposition.
The tackles don’t need to be so hard as to rattle the teeth loos or put the ball carrier into traction for six months (though this is preferable and great to watch Tee-Hee) just effective enough to put the guy to ground quickly. The passes don’t need to be at 100Kph just catchable etc etc if you train the basics into the team and have them do it well, success will follow.
Forwards & backs:
The forwards must always strive to be a cohesive unit working with one mind and purpose and come to think of it, your backs must always be a cohesive unit working with one mind and purpose… Yeah ok, Uber coach, how do we pull that one off?!
Getting your backs up:
Kids love making up moves, this is good and should be encouraged and implemented when the time is right, however, to start with it’s a good idea to just get the simple fundamental things done right before we even consider the great convoluted plays that require superhuman speed, agility, and advanced mind-reading skills as well as an incompetent opposition.
To pass, to catch, to tackle, to ruck, to mall and to communicate reliably with each other is what we want to aim for!
Drill the players in calling for the ball. The ball carrier should also look at the receiver before he passes, this simple habit will ultimately make for a slick backline and forward pack.
Practice simple wraparounds and inside passes, backing up the ball carrier etc and low and behold the exciting plays will follow.
All the clever-dick moves and trickery must be backed up by solid basic fundamentals!
Stepping on stepping in…
All young (and sometimes not so young) players seem to have an inability to see their outside men and support players, and all players for some reason think that if they run back inside (into the opposing team’s forward pack who is following) they are somehow going to weave or crash their way through unscathed and score a magnificent solo try??!!
I tell my players, that if you feel like ducking back inside instead of passing then that’s the exact moment they should pass!
Once the penny drops and they put this into practice, the tries will come.
The only time they should step back inside is if they find themselves getting to close to the side line or “isolated” and heading back into their forwards is the only way to keep the team in control of the ball, hopefully.
Trying to get some sort of Advantage.
Teaching them about the “Advantage line” is very important.
Can you imagine a line (the Advantage line) that goes from sideline to sideline through the center of the ball?
Now that line moves up and down the field with the ball.
The object is to drive or surge over the line, when balls lose on the ground in a ruck, thus gaining the advantage or driving the opposition back if ball hasn’t been released as in a mall.
This can be demonstrated thus:
Put the ball on the ground and describe the imaginary line running through it. Step over the ball and explain that the only way the opposition can get it with out incurring a penalty is to push you back or to rake it back with their feet.
You can then add; releasing the ball, lay back, pop-up, and coming “through the gate” ruck and mall etc.
You must drill your backs in aggressive ruck and mall technique as well as they will need to hold the fort until the forwards arrive. Theirs nothing worse than watching one of your wingers being worked over by the opposition while one of his fellow backs just stands there only meters away yelling at the forwards to get there finger out and come and do “their” job!
It’s very important to coach the team to be as intense and determined in this area as they are in there tackling!
Slow, timid or half-hearted rucking and mauling will never win you a game!
You can’t afford to have players hanging around at the back of the ruck as if they were waiting for a written invitation to join in!
They must drive in and surge over the ball (through the all-important gate) and stay on their feet at all times.
The more aggressively the team attacks in this area the more likely they will dominate the opposition and win the game, (controlled) aggression is the key!
Defensively speaking:
What’s the one thing a Rugby/League player must have that a Soccer player rarely needs? COURAGE!
Once they reach grade (usually U10) and begin to play full contact Rugby/League is where you must be at your best as a coach.
The team needs to know how to make a tackle and how to take a tackle.
It is the coach’s job to give the individual player the skills and confidence he needs to play with determination and courage.
“Get out there and smash em!” doesn’t mean a bloody thing unless they know how to.
First, read up on the latest training methods and know them and full safety gear must be worn always, shoulder pads, mouth guard, and preferably headgear, nothing puts a kid off and makes them tackling shy faster than getting hurt early on.
Start slow, get the boys to do everything at a walking pace, concentrating on their technique.
Then move on to the ever-popular tackle bag.
The coach should also carry a hit shield on his arm for these drills.
Now rugby is a game of movement and seldom does an opposing player has the jolly good manners to hold still so you can pound him into the ground, so;
It’s a good idea to start with a static target to perfect the team’s technique and then we make things interesting by moving the bag;
▪towards the player, representing a player charging the line,
▪away from the player, representing a fleeing target and the classic tackle from behind,
▪moving the bag left or right, fast and slow etc giving the boy a moving and random target.
Once the bag is down that’s not the end of the tackle, the boy should jump to his feet go “through the gate” and drive you off hitting the shield.
The same drills can be done with two players; this is to simulate clearing out and driving off. One boy makes the tackle while the other then drives you off, he is then joined by the original tackler and on the command “break” etc they both go back jump over the bag on the ground and both drive-in making sure to “come through the gate.”
Ok, it’s now time for a “live fire” drill, or taking on a real player.
Have the team line up and pick a tackler, pass the ball to a player of similar size (and aggression if possible to start with) and tell him to get past the defender, and watch the fun.
A couple of Smartys or M&Ms to the winner is a good incentive.
Also, get the ball carrier to practice laying back or popping up the ball if they are successfully tackled.
Now some players are good defenders and others not, but it’s a general rule of thumb that the more aggressively you play and defend the less likely you will be hurt! Teach them this!
A player who is timid in defense should receive personal one-on-one training and be encouraged to try to attempt, “The perfect tackle.”
The object is for him to make the hit, not the other way round.
To take a deep breath concentrate on their technique and give it their best shot, this will take a lot of patience and encouragement on the part of the coach but once the boy achieves this particularly in a game he should be Ok from then on.
As for ruck & mall, scrums and line-outs etc read your manuals go to the coaching seminars hit the net, and ask advice from other coaches.
Practice makes perfect.
The Captain:
In U6 to U9 every one should have a go.
However, in U10 and up you must choose someone with a level head who can lead and inspire and keep on-field discipline and communicate with the ref and his team when called upon.
This is no easy task for the average 9, 10 or 11 year old but you will need to find someone.
He Who Kicks the ball:
In U6 to U9 give everyone a go.
From U10 up it must be the best man for the job, it’s a good idea to have “shootouts” at training to see who the best goal kicker is and a game of forcing’s back to see who has the best boot in general play etc.
Graded games are not the place to give someone a go at goal kicking; you must use the best man for the job always.
This must be explained to the team and the non-kickers encouraged to practice and improve their skills.
More tomorrow,
Grunthos