Rugby | Rugby Drills

6x6m Grid  Ball  Players line up in 3s opposite sides of the grid.  Simply pass the ball along the line.  1 defender is in the middle of the grid putting pressure on all ball carriers. Once hand completed the next line starts immediately.  Defender swaps out when there is a mistake or when he touches someone with the ball.  Progression: add another defender, make the passes wider. 

The aim of the drill is to develop mechanisms to unlock defences in open play The first defender/feeder starts with the ball at a cone set up on the touch line five metres out from the try line Set another 2 cones 15 meters up on the same touch line. Two players (defenders of the 3v2) start from here once the 2v1 is completed. Set 2 cones on the try line 5 metres apart to create the start position for the two attackers and the attacking channel for the 2v1 The ball is fed from the first defender, with the attackers completing a 2v1 The defender joins the two attackers to create a 3v2 Two attackers then become the two defenders for the next repetition of the drill

The aim of the drill is to develop players wrist strength. 

The aim of the drill is to develop players wrist strength. Start with the ball sitting on the outside of the hip No backward movement before you pass. Push out from the hit. Hands finishes towards target 

Tell your players the following...... There will be one runner. 1 player, static, on each cone. 4 players on the cones in total. There will also be two players in defence, they will have a tackle/ruck pad each. The defenders will be 3 meters in from the start of the grid, the second defender 7 meters behind the first. The defenders can move left and right, but not backward and forward. There will be a ball on the first left cone, and on the second right cone. The player at the first cone with the ball will pass the ball to the runner, who avoids the defender and passes the ball to the reciever on the opposite first cone. The runner then catches the second ball, passed by the player on the second cones. The runner passes the ball to the opposite reciever, avoid contact with the defender. The runner then turns and does the same again - the defender steps back a bit. Don't forget to change the defenders, proving all players will the chance to attack.

Set up 4 cones in a square, and get the players to form equal lines behind each cone. The ball starts with a player on one cone who runs towards the cone to his right and passes the ball across the square to a player from the next cone running onto the ball. He catches the ball and continues his run, passing the ball to someone from the next cone running onto the ball. Change the direction which the ball is going Progressions: Get the players to change direction on your command (shout/whistle) Multiple balls at a time As a group must complete 10 successful passes before the session can move on, every time a ball is dropped the whole group does an exercise (e.g. 10 press ups).

Set up a square with cones, making one side of the square with two gates of cones.  Get the players to line up evenly behind the two individual cones (See diagram - 1 and 2) The player with the ball runs out and puts the ball down between the green cones, once he has put the ball down he runs and joins the back of his line. The player behind him in the queue follows him and passes the ball off the floor to a player running onto the ball from the next line (2), once he passes the ball he runs and joins the back of his line. The receiver of the pass also has a partner running behind him so when he puts the ball down between the green cones his partner can pass it to the next person in the opposite line. Both run and join the back of their line and the drill continues... After a period of time swap over the lines so players practice passing in both directions Progressions: Instead of placing the ball on the floor, go to ground and present it Instead of working in partners, work in threes - the ball carrier goes to ground, the second player gets in a position to clear our any defenders, and the third person passes the ball off the floor. Add in a defender with a hit shield or a live defender to make a tackle but then be passive in the ruck.

Tell your players the following..... One group of 4 players will be in defence. The other two groups of 4 will be in attack, they will attack one group at a time. There will be two attackerss and two defenders in the first two channels, the third channel will be open and free of attackers and defenders. The fourth channel will have an attacker and defender, the fifth channel will be free of attackers and defenders, the sixth channel will have an attacker and defender, and the last channel will be free of attackers or defenders. Defenders can move forward and side to side within their own channel, but they cannot leave their channel. Attackers attack their own channels, but can call a loop (L1,L2,L3 etc.) in order to attack the open channels. Allow players to discover solutions, question - try not to tell. Change the defenders.

Lets get the ball and the players moving with lateral passing through the hands. Each training area only needs one ball, and that ball should start with the any of the two players at the very ends of the L. Tell players to move forward, passing the ball down the line. When the ball gets to the last receiver, that player will pass it to the first receiver in the next line that is waiting to go. They should advance right away. Allow the players to simply move the ball down the line.

The aim of the drill is to develop players wrist strength. 

4 Tackle Bags. 10 Cones and 1 Ball. 10m x 30m. The first player in the line begins with the ball. As he approaches the first cone and passes to player 2 who is supporting. Player 1 carries on their run and hits the tackle bag before running backwards to player 2 original position. Player 2 on receiving the ball passes the ball onto player 3 before hitting the tackle bag and back pedalling to player 3 original position. When the ball reaches player 5, that player side steps behind the others back to position 1 where the drill is repeated.

Start with 2 players on the centre cone, each with a ball, and facing each other. On the shout "GO", they both run backwards to the first cone They then side step up the grid to the second cone Next players run through the slalom cones back to the start where the ball is passed to the next players Next players can only go when each player has received a ball (to ensure each race is fair).

The first player runs around the red cone and back down to the start of the slalom. There the player zig-zags up the slalom, then back down before running around the second red cone and down to the second group of players where the ball is passed to the next player Important no more then a max of 3 players per slalom to make sure that there is lots of activity.

1 vs 1 in a small pitch All players line up on the same line on one side of the pitch in the middle. On the coaches signal, a player with a ball goes around a cone in one corner and another player goes around the other corner of the same sideline.  Then it is a simple 1 vs 1 with the player with the ball using footwork to beat the defender. You can vary the level of contact at your discretion. 

Split your players into two teams, giving one group of players a set of coloured bibs to set them apart, and quickly tell your players the following laws: We will be playing a rugby league style touch. When touched: set the ball down, stand over the ball, allow the scum-half to move the ball away from the point of contact. The defenders should stay on side following a touch, and should not compete for the ball. Any infringements in defence should result in the defending team conceding 10 Meters or possibly giving 1 or more extra touches to the attacking team. I'll leave this to your judgement depending on your team's age, skill level, and your session target/s. The attacking team can sustain three touches before they have to kick. Their kick should be as it would be in the game: a kick to touch, a kick for territory, or a kick that can be regained e.g. a grubber kick. The defenders should behave as they would in a real game. Quick put in's from the touchlines replace lineouts. Defenders who take the ball from an attacking kick should counter attack. A forth touch results in a turn over. The Scrum Half has a maxium of 5 seconds to move the ball from the point of touch. A ball kicked directly to touch from outside the attacking teams 22, or where the ball has been taken into the 22 by the attacking team and then kicked into touch - will result in a turn over with play starting on the five meter line closest to where the kick was made. The defence should be 10 meters back. A ball kicked from inside the attacking teams 22 can go directly to touch, as long as the attacking team did not carry the ball into their own 22 before the kick. The resulting put in will be to the opposition from where the ball has went into touch. Quick put-in's are enoucraged, if not possible the ball is played from the 5 meter line with the defence 10 meters back. Give points for quick put ins that work. Feel free to play with any of noted laws, let us know the law variations that work for you!

Set up a wide pitch, with cones on the half way line plus an extra box on two opposite corners. These corner boxes are the prisons for tackled/tagged players. The aim of the game is for players to run into the opposing team's area and grab a ball to bring back into their ball area in their half. However, if a player is tackled/tagged while in the other team's half they must go and stand in the prison square. Players can be released from prison by being tagged by a team-mate. Once released they must walk around the outside of the pitch back to their own half before rejoining the game.