Rugby: realignment

The drill starts with two teams of equal players playing a standard game of touch. Whenever a touch is made, the defender immediately joins the attacking side and acts as scrum half. This creates an attacking overload. Players must try to score a try by exploiting the overload in the least amount of touches. The drill resets after a try is scored.

The realignment and depth hands drill is a quick drill to focus the players in sharpening their alignment and depth before a session. You can spend as long or as short on this drill as you need. The aim of the drill is to develop the speed at which players realign themselves, to support their early hand-catch, quick and accurate transfer of the ball to a support player. Set a 5 cones 1.5 meter apart in straight line. This will mark where the players will start the drill from Set 4 cones at a diagonal in line with the starting cones from one edge. This will be the cones that the defending players need to retreat to before coming up to pressure the attacking players. The first attacking player needs to step back 1 meter and will receive the ball from the first defending player who has also stepped back 1 meter to his designated cone Divide the group into 4 attacking player and 5 defending players, there should be a free attacking player The ball starts with the defending player On the coaches call, all defending players need to work back to their designated cone and then come forward in a straight line to their opposite attacking player The attacking players set their own depth to ensure they have time to catch and pass effectively On the coaches call, the first defending player will move back to their cone, once they get to the cone they pass the ball to the first attacking player, and then the first defending player tries to put pressure on the first attacking player The attacking players try to get the ball to the 5th player without being ‘touched’ by a defending player

Excellent drill to get players working off the ball to create depth while not turning their backs. Groups of 3 or 4. Cones- spaced 10 m away. Distant of past changes depending on ability level. Players must time their runs. Always be at full speed when moving forward. Make sure past technique is strong.

Out in 4s - simple hands - When players reach the end they should turn left. Group realigns around the cone and then use simple hands to finish. You can put defenders into the second channel to increase the difficulty of this drill.

Set up one small grid (5x5m), one medium grid (10x10m) and one large area (15x15m). Players work in groups of 3 with one ball. Coach shouts out the name of a square (large, medium or small) and players have to realign quickly inside the coloured square. The idea of this practice is that players understand how to use the full width of the pitch and realign quickly.

4 sausages 4 Bags The sausages and bags are lined up alternately in a line.8 defenders start lined up outside of the tackle grid.Whistle goes, the tacklers must shuffle across as a team (in a line) to line up opposite a bag or sausage before making a hit.

Tell your players the following...... There will be one ball to each group, any player can be the ball carrier. On GO, the group moves towards the closest cone.At the cone, the players spread out and attack the line at pace and with width. They should realign following the attack left, to attack again right. When the second groups sees the first group complete their first set of passes, they should begin without waiting.

Excellent drill to get players working off the ball to create depth while not turning their backs. Groups of 3 or 4. Cones- spaced 10 m away. Distant of past changes depending on ability level. Players must time their runs. Always be at full speed when moving forward. Make sure past technique is strong.

The first player moves forwards, makes contact with the tackle bag and retreats diagonally to the line of cones. The next player joins the line and both the players move forward and hit the tackle bag or shield before retreating back to the line again. The third player then joins the line and all three players go out to meet the tackle bag, shield or fall on the ball. Drill continues with all players involved.

Tell your players the following......... The coach will call a number e.g. 1. That attacking group must attack, aiming to score a try at the opposite end of the grid. The defence must try to stop them. Simple as that - except the number calls will be quick - there will be no delays between attacks, so the defence must be Sharpe and respond quickly to what they see. That's it - lets play. Don't forget to change the defenders.

Divide your players into groups of five, with one player acting as a running. Each grid will need a runner. The runner starts on the runners cone. You might wish to have two groups of five at each grid, and to have a quick demo before sending all the players to their own grids. Keep your player briefing, brief! The first five passers attack the runners line, passing the pass down the line as they go. The runner sets off as soon as the first ball carrier starts to move. The aim of attack is to score a try in the corner, beating the runner - so quick hands. Each player should realign following their pass, there will be two attacks for each group before they move the ball onto the next group. After the first attack the runner goes to their cones on the opposite side of the grid ready for the next attack. The attack begins when the first players picks the ball off the ground. Don't forget to change the runners. Move the runner cones in to progress the exercise and to put the attack under more pressure.

Set up a channel with two sets of defenders working in pairs inside. Three attacking players start with the ball and run around the far cone, realigning as they run around the cone. Players then play out the 3v2. After this first 3v2 the attackers must move the ball quickly and play out the second 3v2.

WHY?Put pressure on attacking side. Force ball back inside. More numbers in defence than attackers. WHEN?When the ball is at the edge of the field near 5m lines. Attackers playing close to the game line. HOW?Lead from Outside backs. Line up outside shoulder of attackers. Run Up and In. Fast Line speed. Stay connected to inside man. Resposible for the space inside you. Aim for Man&Ball hits or interceptions.

Within a group there are two groups of 4 attackers and one chaser/scrum half. At the middle point, marked by a cones, the scrum half moves the ball to the first attacking line. The scrum half firstly tracks the progress of the ball, as the exercise progresses - the scrum half should apply more and more pressure to the ball carrier - working up to the point of becoming a full on defender. When the ball reaches the opposite end of the grid, the last player in the line sets the ball down. The scrum half then feeds the ball to the next attacking line, fulfilling their own role within the exercise. The opposite attacking line should realign in preparation for the next attack. The tempo of this exercise should be high.

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.

Within a group there are two groups of 4 attackers and one chaser/scrum half. At the middle point, marked by a cones, the scrum half moves the ball to the first attacking line. The scrum half firstly tracks the progress of the ball, as the exercise progresses - the scrum half should apply more and more pressure to the ball carrier - working up to the point of becoming a full on defender. When the ball reaches the opposite end of the grid, the last player in the line sets the ball down. The scrum half then feeds the ball to the next attacking line, fulfilling their own role within the exercise. The opposite attacking line should realign in preparation for the next attack. The tempo of this exercise should be high.

Tell you players the following...... There will be two players on one side of the middle line of cones, and another group on the other side. They will be two separate teams. It's rugby tennis, so the aim of the game is to pass the ball in such a way that the other two players won't be able to stop it from going out of play, however. The ball must be a normal rugby pass, and the ball must hit the ground inside the tennis court on the oppositions side. The passer must be 2 meters behind the center line. That's it, lets play.

During a game of touch in a grid sized 30 x 30 metres the coach can choose to call <em>blitz</em>, <em>drift</em> or <em>cover</em> at any breakdown. Upon hearing the call the defenders must run and touch the relevant line before running back to rejoin the game. When the defenders are running to touch their line the attackers must turn their back on the defenders and give the ball to the coach. When the defenders are almost back in position the coach should roll the ball back to the attackers to restart the game. The coach can later develop the game by introducing a visual clue to the defenders, instead of an audio cue, thus forcing the attackers to react to an unknown type of defence.

Put a group of 7 inside inside one of your grids. Tell them the following laws: The player not wearing a bib (the runner) is trying stay away from the ball - because if you touch that player with the ball they have to do 10 press-ups etc. (amend depending of players age etc.). Give one of the 3 man teams the ball; the hunters, it's their job to pass the ball to each other hunting the runner, trying to touch the runner with the ball. The other team of three is there to try and intercept the ball as it is passed between the hunters (they are interceptors). Ball carriers can run with the ball. The ball cannot be thrown at the runner. Passes can be in any direction. If the ball is intercepted by the other team, they now hunt the runner and the opposing team has to try and intercept the ball to get it back. Don't forget to change the runner by swapping them with a member of of the two teams in the grid. If a team has been good at keeping the ball, swap the ball over when you feel the time is right. If the ball is dropped or a pass goes outside the grid, it's turned over to the other team who then become the hunters. The team trying to intercept cannot push or have any contact with the hunters (ball carriers). <em>Law Change:</em> After a little time you can change the law to: the ball carrier cannot move with the ball or the ball carrier only take 2/3 steps upon catching the ball.

This game is designed to teach the players about body height in tackling and ruck clean out. Set up a field about 15m long by 10m wide. Keep it narrow to give the defenders a better chance at catching the runners. Tell all the players to line up at one end facing back down the playing field. Choose 2 players to stand in the middle and tell them they are the defenders who have to tackle any runners before they reach the other side. Explain to the runners they have to run from one end to the other without getting tackled by the defenders. If a runner gets tackled they must stop exactly where they were tackled and stand on that spot. They are called bashers and cannot move their feet until the game is finished. The bashers can, however, push runners over if they come close enough to reach (bashers cannot move their feet so a good strong stance is necessary). If a runner is pushed over by a basher he/she becomes a basher too. Once the runners have made it through to the other end the bashers and tacklers turn around to face the runners and on the coaches call the run through again. This continues until there are no more runners and the last runner wins.

Tell your players the following..... Ball carrier on the lower right cone advances to the center of the grid, drops and pop the ball to a player coming from the opposite cone. That player then pops the ball to the player waiting at the cone they are running towards. The player on the ground must clear the area right away. The waiting ball carrier at the upper right cone then advances and does the same as above. The sequence repeats.

Tell your players the following....... One team of 7 will be in attack, the attack should start behind the 22 meter line and they will have the ball. The defenders will have 4 defenders behind the posts, the other defenders will be in goal (give them a passing exercise to do). On the whistle the attack begins, it will be 7 v 4, full contact. If the attack score a try, the defence will then go to 5 players - and will again start from behind the posts while the attack will start from behind the 22. Each time the attack score, the defence increases by 1. Count how many attacks are needed to get to a 7 v 7 situation. The teams will then switch. The winning team is the team that can get to a 7 v 7 situation in the fewest attacks.

Use half or a full pitch for this exercise. A full team of 7 will run unopposed. Players should use this as a rehearsal of everything that might happen in the game, and therefore should execute all of the following..... Line-outs, and what happen after them. Scrums, and what happens next. All moves. The full attacking patterns. Any kicking strategies, including restarts. When you feel the players are ready, bring in opposition with pads, and then without in full contact.

The attacker goes when ready, and must round either the top or bottom cone. The defender must mirror the movements of the attacker on the opposite side. They then compete in a 1 v 1, the attacker looking to score, and the defender seeking to stop them. This is full contact. When the first two have finished, the next attacker should go right away, followed by the defender. Swap the attackers and the defenders around when you feel it appropriate.

The sequence of passing on this exercise is as following...... P2 passes to P1, who passes to P4 using a pass from the ground. As the same time P3 passes to P2 who passes to P1, who passes to P3, from the ground. and so the exercise continues. There should be no delay in passes.

The exercise is simple, the attacker has 2 minutes to score as many tries as they can. They do this by attacking the space between 2 sets of cones, but there is a defender they need to avoid. When it is clear which area the attacking is going to attack, that defender can advance. This is a full contact exercise. If the attackers scores, they return to the center of the grid to attack again. They cannot attack the same defender twice. If the attack fails, they reset and have another go. After 1/2 minutes, switch the attacker. This is a competition, so keep score.

Tell your players the following..... One player will straddle the bag and compete for the ball on the ground. The two remaining players will remove the competing player. The competing player will change sides, and compete for the ball on the opposite side, but the remaining two players need to get there quickly to stop them and remove the competing player again. This sequence repeats until the coach says stop. That's it, let get going. Don't forget to change the players around.

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.

The aim of the drill is to develop ball carrying in a contact zone.

Tell your players the following..... Pass the ball around, clockwise. After each circuit of the ball, take one half step back and complete another circuit. Keep stepping back until players start to reach their limits in terms of passing distance. Start to work your way back in towards the box. Change the direction of the ball when you get to the box, and do the same working back out again.