Hockey: Back To Back Pre Contact Wrestle

Set up 5 cones around in a circle. The tackler works out from the first cone to make the tackle. The tackler then backtracks around the next and then comes forward to make the tackle again. Two tackles off the right shoulder, one front on and two off the left shoulder.

This is a great warm-up for defensive and evasion sessions, or it might even be a warm-up that helps you reinforce coaching points made during a previous session. The best bit is that it's fun and relevant to all ages. If you're coaching tag rugby, change the warm-up exercise from contact to tags.

One team runs clockwise round the inside of the circle with the other team running anti-clockwise around the outside of the circle. The circle in this case is marked out using blue cones, but you can use whatever colour you like.

When the coach shouts 'Jailbreak' the players inside the inner circle try to 'escape' to outside the 10m x 10m square (yellow cones). The size of the square and distance from the circle is a suggestion, play with it a little and let us know your variations!

The inside team scores a point for each 'jailbreaker' - swap over. If you have an odd number of players give the defenders the extra man.

• Groups of 2.

• Everyone find some space.
• Stand opposite your partner.
• One of the players (attacker) use footwork and move arround.
• The other (defender), try to keep as close as they can to the moving player.
• The attackers claps at a point of his choice, this is when the defender makes a shoulders on contact.

• Low Impact.
• Shoulders on. 

• Small playing area, for 1 v 1 tackling.
• Players line up in two lines adjacent to the coned area.
• Coach shouts go and the front two players run round their end to end up facing each other.
• The coach passes the ball to the attacker who runs at the defender, and the defender tries to take them down.