Sportplan rugby has played a large role in my team's love for the game!
I'm trying to work out what the best age is to introduce contact to children (tackling, mauling, rucking). I think learning early how to handle contact safely is very important, but at the same time, I want to make sure it is not too early. Are there any universal guidelines, or does it vary from national union to national union?
I am looking for drills / ideas on how to teach U6/U7 about how to stay "onside" during a game.
How to begin coaching when the sport is not popular and many of player candidates are not familiar with rugby ? What is key of initiation ? How to start from white paper ?
How do I motivate my U13's to be more determined as they are generally to nice?
If you have 30 min before the start of a match how should you prepare a team of under 10 players. How do you get them suitably motivated to hit the ground runnung with a high level of intensity.
Does anyone know some games for 5-8 year old children referring to rugby?
We have a large squad and need a transparent way to assess our players to justify the team selection - does anyone know of, or use an assessment tool to assess skills in this age group?
teahcing primary school kids and could use some drills
I have noticed that a lot of children try to tackle with their hands instead of their shoulders, does anybody else have this problem and what can I do to remedy it. Larger players run straight through a poor hands only defence, kids trying to grab at jerseys and coming up with nothing. Thanks for any input
how do you help children to loose the fear of contact and of ground?
I am looking for a Day 0 type of session for American children who may have never held a rugby ball. If I move forward with a rugby exhibition/team creation in the neighborhood, I want to make sure I know how/what to teach Day 0. I'm hoping that interest is growing for touch and flag rugby due to the recent in Philadelphia between the USA Eagles and the Maori All Blacks. I was there. It was fantastic. Tickets sold out so fast, I think there will be more of these in the area. Thanks.
I have started an under 10s team up, and I would say about 8 from the 13 children I have , did not play rugby until about 6 months ago. Of these players, there seems to be a lot of potential, as we are scoring tries against teams, that very rarely concede tries.the problem I got with them, is that we are very poor at organising our selves in defense when the opposition has the ball, which does result in us conceding quite a few tries. We have some very good tacklers in the team. Can anyone offer some ideas on how I can get them to organise themselves? Thanks . Chris.
I coach under 8's and next season they will start contact. When am I allowed to start teaching them tackling skills? I sit january during their under 8 season or at the start of the under 9 season ?
I coach under 9`s rugby and a lot of the kids have a bad fear of tackling, they lack the confidence to get stuck in. What is the best thing to help them overcome this?
Hi folks, I have been coaching children from 7 to 16 years for along time. I now have a new challenge. We are opening rugby up for children from 2 years to 7 years. We will also be holding classes for children with special needs and would appreciate any tips or dialogue with coaches who have any experience. I look forward to exchanging views and results with any coaches willing to share. We will hold a few test sessions in the near future and will stay in touch. Many thanks. Kieron .Hong Kong. ( rugby for all)
im coaching the under 6's how do i keep them interested in the game
What drills would anybody reccomend to encourage forward running in an u8s side,whilst keeping it fun?Some players tend to crab along the pitch.
Can anyone (because I am maxxed at work and am struggling to find time to verify myself) advise me where in the RFU rules and regs and especially Reg 15 it states anything about the use of swearing or abusive language whilst coaching youngsters please?
an RFU directive states that coaches should not hold pads/shields for juniors to run into during sessions, or even juniors holding pads for each other!!! I notice a lot of drills utilise pads as this was something we always used when I trained years ago! I personally think they are a good thing (especially since some of the juniors I coach are 'not small'!) BUT wondered what the general thoughts were out there in SportPlan world....
How can I teach 8 year old boys to spin pass
in more ways than one
The isolated ball carrier is rugby's spookiest turnover. Here is the five-step fix, plus drills that rebuild support lines fast.
Tacklers are aiming lower, so carriers who dip late put heads at risk. Teach footwork, a strong early body height and leg drive to win the collision safely.
The hooker's brake foot moved from trial into full law in July 2026. Here is how to coach it so your front row stays stable, legal and safe.
Coaches from around the world look to Sportplan for coaching confidence.