Rugby: Scrum Half Pole Position

• Explain to thescrum halfs that they are to attempt to pass the ball at the attackers and attempt to hit them below the shoulders.
• It won't be a completed pass as the attackers are just trying to avoid getting hit.
• The scrum halfs can move sideways along the edge of grid, however, cannot move forward into the grid.
• The attackers can attack when they like, and if hit they can be out - or have more than one life.
• When an scrum half makes it through the grid successfully, with out being directly hit by a pass, they wait at the other end till all the other attackers make it.
• The scrum halfs must make their passes/hits from the groud.

Tell the players the following laws.......

1. One team will be attacking, the ball carrying team. The other will be a defending team.
2. Defending players mark attacking players.
3. The ball is passed by kicking, and can travel in any direction.
4. Players try to catch the ball in the air, and have 3 seconds to make the pass. They can take 3 steps in that time.
5. Tries are scored in the usual way.
6. Players can compete for lose balls.
7. Players should use all of the space available, and should move the ball to space.

• You can make this game a little harder by saying that attacking players must catch the passed ball in the air, if they do not, then the ball is turned over to the other team.

Using cones and tackle bags, mark out your training area as shown in the diagram. The tackle bags should be stood up, and at a distance away from the play that tests the strength of their pass.

Set 6 balls at each cone and divide your players into groups of 2, and allocate one group of 2 to each training area.

Tell your players that...

• Each player has five tackle bags and six balls, the winner is the player that knocks down the most balls.
  
  A player cannot leave their cone and must knock the bags down by passing and hitting with the ball on the bag or the bag itself.

Split your team into two teams. One team will be up to bat/kick and the other team will field. The fielding team should take up positions that they feel will be advantageous to their game plan - don't worry too much about over coaching this - players can learn as they play.

The fielding team should have a pitcher/thrower of the ball. It is his job to stand on the pitching mound and to throw the ball as hard as he can toward the hitter/kicker. The idea is to force the hitter/kicker to struggle to catch the ball. A bad throw is considered wide and three bad throws means the hitter/kicker gets to walk to first base. However, three good throws that are dropped will be considered three strikes and the hitter/kicker will then be out.

So the pitcher throws the ball, as hard as he can, to the kicker/hitter -who if they catch it can make a kick to space. The kick must land on the pitch, but can bounce into touch. If the kick is caught then the hitter/kicker is out. If not then they can start running. They need to get from 1st to 2nd to 3rd to 4th and then back to where they started in order to score a home run. They can stop at any base and be considered safe. However, runners can be called out when running between bases if the fielders manage to get the ball grounded at any of the two bases they are between.