drills to improve the flat line technique

Rugby CoachCoach

I would set out a pitch with soft ground marker cones and have every players set at different distances back from the start point see below

x = cones P = players   1-5 number of player     D=Defenders

Wing                      Centre               Full Back          Centre             Wing

xx                           xx                      xx                      xx                 xx

P1                           P2                      P3                     P4                 P5

On go or throw ball in centre of field, P1 - 5 will run at 5 second intervals up around their own cones and back in attack formation, the 5 seconds pause and run around the cones gives the player on the ball time to run and challenge the defender.

use only 3/4 defenders to make it an easy over lap by using the pass before the contact point.

The other way to go is atack and defence in 2 boxes in middle of field using a full squad of players, on whistle both teams must sprint to get through their own posts, attacking side will be passed the ball, other team must defend and stop the attack. 

Another drill is getting each player in attack to do 1-5 excercises before moving from their spot ie . 1 for the ball carrier, 2 for 1st reciever and so on this way you will have players arriving at different times and then you have depth in field to play some rugby.

have a nice day.

enjoy making up your own skills and see what the players can come up with too.

set them the challenge to coach a move per week.??

Sportplan TeamAdministrator, United Kingdom

Hi Gus,

Have you tried using the Chalkboard tool? It's free to use and is great for quickly sketching out your own practices.

Using the drill you described I quickly drew this image to accompany your notes using the "Add Diagram" button (below) to include this drawing with this answer.

All the best,
The Sportplan Team

Using the Chalkboard

DESCRIPTION

On go or throw ball in centre of field, P1 - 5 will run at 5 second intervals up around their own cones and back in attack formation, the 5 seconds pause and run around the cones gives the player on the ball time to run and challenge the defender. Use only 3/4 defenders to make it an easy over lap by using the pass before the contact point.

Using the Chalkboard

DESCRIPTION

On go or throw ball in centre of field, P1 - 5 will run at 5 second intervals up around their own cones and back in attack formation, the 5 seconds pause and run around the cones gives the player on the ball time to run and challenge the defender. Use only 3/4 defenders to make it an easy over lap by using the pass before the contact point.

PhilipCoach, Ireland

Hi,

It's hard for children to think about what they need to do as an entire line, adults struggle with that. Young children are mostly worried about their own rolls within the wider line. Therefore the smaller you can make the line in the child’s mind, the better. So, I’d suggest you don't focus too much on an entire line - focus on units of 3. Each player is responsible for the player to their left and right, and only those players. Keep the spacing tight at the start; players should be able to touch each other’s fingertips at the very least. Have them move slowly, even walking to start with. Players can be linked in some way, hands, holding a ball between the palms of hands, polls, belts etc.

You might even consider blind folding them to reinforce that they work in threes, and will have to use touch to know that their right and left defender is there, moving up slowly in line with others. This will also increase communication between the defenders. Build on this small unit idea, and see how you get on. At the higher end of the game, defences tend to operate in smaller units in order to control line speed, and to make the defence strongest at the point of contact for a number of reasons.

Hope this helps a little.

Philip.