Rugby: Contact Relay

Instil confidence and tackle toughness into your players with this tackling from the front, side and back session! Build their knowledge of the benefits of tackling and how different type of tackle can determine the way the phase plays out.

Get the team excited to be back together again. Pre-season?s going to be a battle, but go and make it fun with this burner!

• The players in their groups of 3 stand between the lines of the inner square with the working group stood inside the other players.
• The first group of 3 begins by running across the grid passing the ball. When they reach the centre the ball is put down an they then run at the players with the pads (on their left) each pushing their player to the outer square. The players then swap.
• The pad players run across to the tackle bags and push and tackle the bags to the outer square.
• Players swap again now the new 3 players (third group) run to the ball pick it up and take the ball turn right to face the 3 players on the 12 o'clock side of the square and run into contact for the ball carrier to present the ball.
• This ball is then picked up by the 3 players being pushed back and the drill starts again.
• Keep the tempo of this exercise high.

Note: You can change the position of each activity within the training area - but that will impact on the instructions to coaches. Players can basically go in any direction, but they do need to communicate and work as a unit. Don't get to hung up on where players should be going, or in what order.

• Ball carrier goes forward, hitting in on the shield, turning to pop the call to a support player who passes the ball across the grid into the second channel for the first player in the opposite channel to take and advance on the the shield in their channel.
• They hit in on the shield, turning to pop the ball to a support player who then passes the ball to the next receiver in the first channel.
• Keep going, but don't forget to change the players on the tackle shields.