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counter DRILLS
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3 Touch Kick

Split your players into two teams, giving one group of players a set of coloured bibs to set them apart, and quickly tell your players the following laws: We will be playing a rugby league style touch. When touched: set the ball down, stand over the ball, allow the scum-half to move the ball away from the point of contact. The defenders should stay on side following a touch, and should not compete for the ball. Any infringements in defence should result in the defending team conceding 10 Meters or possibly giving 1 or more extra touches to the attacking team. I'll leave this to your judgement depending on your team's age, skill level, and your session target/s. The attacking team can sustain three touches before they have to kick. Their kick should be as it would be in the game: a kick to touch, a kick for territory, or a kick that can be regained e.g. a grubber kick. The defenders should behave as they would in a real game. Quick put in's from the touchlines replace lineouts. Defenders who take the ball from an attacking kick should counter attack. A forth touch results in a turn over. The Scrum Half has a maxium of 5 seconds to move the ball from the point of touch. A ball kicked directly to touch from outside the attacking teams 22, or where the ball has been taken into the 22 by the attacking team and then kicked into touch - will result in a turn over with play starting on the five meter line closest to where the kick was made. The defence should be 10 meters back. A ball kicked from inside the attacking teams 22 can go directly to touch, as long as the attacking team did not carry the ball into their own 22 before the kick. The resulting put in will be to the opposition from where the ball has went into touch. Quick put-in's are enoucraged, if not possible the ball is played from the 5 meter line with the defence 10 meters back. Give points for quick put ins that work. Feel free to play with any of noted laws, let us know the law variations that work for you!

Warm Up

Continuous break

Coned area 30 metres by 30 metres with two teams of players on one side Coach kicks the ball is kicked into the the grid. 2 different numbers are called with the 1st number being for the number of attackers and the 2nd the number of defenders The attackers have to field the ball, turn and counter attack against the defenders

Match Related

Counter Attack (from kick).

Player X kicks to receivers A, B & C, while players Y & Z chase the kick followed by X.Players A, B & C counter attack, first beating players Y & Z and finally X.Rotateattackers and defenders and repeat.

Decision making

Counter Attack

Tell your players to do the following....... The two passing players keep passing the ball until the coach shouts GO. On GO, the player holding the ball is an attacker, the other two attackers will go with that players. The remaining passer becomes a defender, and will join the defence with the two defenders at the bottom of the grid. On GO - the attack begins, and the defence should try and stop them. The attack aims to score a try at the bottom of the grid. Following each attack the players should return to their positions, but should swap around. You might decide to start this as a touch exercise, then go to contact.

Sevens

Counter Bag

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.

Sevens

Counter Ruck

Condition the drill in favour of 1 team, in this case the blue team. All players lay on their fronts behind the tackle bags. On the coaches whistle, the 2 teams move to contest possession. The blue players can move straight over the bag to contest, but only the 1st red player can do the same. The other 2 red players have to run round the cones before moving in to counter ruck.

Ruck

Flip It

Be brief when telling the players the laws of this game, it's important to get them moving quickly. This is not a contact game. Break your players into two teams, giving each team their own colour of bibs if necessary. One team goes to attack, and one to defence. Nominate a Scrum Half for each team. There is no kicking in this game. Normal laws of rugby apply e.g. a forward pass will result in the ball being turned over to the opposition. If an attacking player is touched: they must go to ground, present the ball, two of their teammates ruck over (staying over the ball), and the Scrum Half moves the ball for the next phase of attack. When you start playing this game make sure that the defence is employing your defensive pattern around the ruck. As the game develops consider telling the defenders that they must have one or more players at the back of the ruck, if they are not fast enough to do this - push them back 10 meters. It’s important that defenders are employing their defensive pattern behind the primary defensive line. Have attacking players do what they normally would at the ruck. Depending on your goals decide on the number of touches you wish to allow e.g. unlimited is not a bad option as mistakes will be made! When you feel the time is appropriate, usually during a ruck, blow you whistle and should FLIP IT – kicking in or throwing in a second ball to the back 3/2 defenders on the team currently in defence OR just kick it behind the defenders. The defensive team goes, without hesitation, into attack. The team that was attacking goes into defence and you or an assistant coach remove the other ball from play when you can. Ideally you might have two balls with different markings. Don't hesitate to shape the game to focus on your session goals, and let us and other coaches know what worked for you!

Warm Up

Ladder Pass

Have four players stand at the four cones, the other players, in their own running groups of four should, be behind them - ready to go when their turn comes. Give the first player, the player with the ladder furthest away, a ball. The other players should lay down on the ground. When the first player runs and reaches the ladder, the second player can get up and attack, the third player can attack when the second player reaches their ladder, and the forth player can get up and attack when the third player reaches their ladder. The pass should be passed down the line, but you can only pass when you're inside your own ladder and you can only receive when you are inside you own ladder. Players aim to get the ball down the line, and should, score at the end before passing the ball to the first receiver in the next group. Players cannot stop inside a ladder or at any time during the attack.

Warm Up

Leg drive in the tackle and counter rucking

Players work 45 seconds at a time before rotating. Play made tackle and drives the pad back. The player then goes on the floor, pops up and turns to counter ruck the other part (who has moved right behind him). Groups of 4. 2 pad holders. One worker. One resting 45 seconds before rotating positions This can be done without pads with body acting as resistance. Keep back straight. Hits square Driver legs (short fast steps)

School

Offside From Kicker

Drill to practice defensive organisation when the kicker must put their teammates onside. Set up a grid roughly 30m long and 30m wide. Set up three players in a line out with a scrum half 2m away and a kicker roughly 10m away (red players). Roughly 20m along the touchline set up a group of players (blue) ready to receive the kick and counter attack. One player in the line out passes the ball down to the scrum half who passes to the kicker. The kicker kicks the ball upfield, and runs to chase. The players in the line out can only defend once the kicker has run past them. The group of players receiving the ball (blue) gather the ball and begin to counter attack, aiming to score on the try-line behind the defenders (yellow cones). The defenders must organise themselves to defend and stop the attack by making a two handed touch on the attacking ball carrier. PROGRESSION: Practice doing high kicks and long kicks to give the defending players an idea of how much time they will have to get organised. Overload the players receiving the ball (blue) to have more players than the defenders Allow the attack to offload instantly after the touch has been made Allow the attack more than one phase to attack so the defence must practice re-organising after a breakdown.

Defensive Patterns

Counter Bag Sevens - Rugby Dri...

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.

General

Counter Ruck Ruck - Rugby Dril...

Condition the drill in favour of 1 team, in this case the blue team. All players lay on their fronts behind the tackle bags. On the coaches whistle, the 2 teams move to contest possession. The blue players can move straight over the bag to contest, but only the 1st red player can do the same. The other 2 red players have to run round the cones before moving in to counter ruck.

General

Counter Attack Sevens - Rugby ...

Tell your players to do the following....... The two passing players keep passing the ball until the coach shouts GO. On GO, the player holding the ball is an attacker, the other two attackers will go with that players. The remaining passer becomes a defender, and will join the defence with the two defenders at the bottom of the grid. On GO - the attack begins, and the defence should try and stop them. The attack aims to score a try at the bottom of the grid. Following each attack the players should return to their positions, but should swap around. You might decide to start this as a touch exercise, then go to contact.

General

Counter Attack (from kick). De...

Player X kicks to receivers A, B & C, while players Y & Z chase the kick followed by X.Players A, B & C counter attack, first beating players Y & Z and finally X.Rotate<BR>attackers and defenders and repeat.

General

Leg drive in the tackle and co...

Players work 45 seconds at a time before rotating. Play made tackle and drives the pad back. The player then goes on the floor, pops up and turns to counter ruck the other part (who has moved right behind him). Groups of 4. 2 pad holders. One worker. One resting 45 seconds before rotating positions This can be done without pads with body acting as resistance. Keep back straight. Hits square Driver legs (short fast steps)

General

Pod-Ruck Ruck - Rugby Drills, ...

On the shout of &quot;GO&quot; the scrum half passes to the player on the first cone, who attacks the 1st bag. Once the bag is attacked and cleared out, the scrum half then passes to the player at the 2nd cone.<br /><br />Once the player at the 2nd cone has attacked their back, the scrum half then passes the ball to the person on the 3rd cone who repeats the exercise.<br /><br />Once the last bag is attacked the exercise is repeated.

General

Offloading Off The Floor Off L...

The aim of the exercise is to develop ball control and offloading off the floor.

General

1st man at the ruck Ruck Clear...

Ball.Groups of 3+2 attackers line up infront of a defender. The 1st attackers takes the ball into contact The defender makes a low chop tackle.The 2nd attacker resposibility is to clear away the tackler from the contact area and look after the ball.Progression : Add second defedner with a tack;e nag to test the stability of the clearer.

General

Decision Making Sevens - Rugby...

Tell the players the following..... The players at the bottom of the triangle will pass the ball back and forward. The passer in the middle must not only complete the pass, but should keep their head up and call out the colour of the cone that is being held up for their attention. Don't forget to change the players around to allow everyone a chance to do everything.

General

Decision Making Box Sevens - R...

Tell your players the following...... The ball carrier runs across the grid with the ball. The opposite player becomes the defender and can tackle. The remaining two players become support options. The ball carrier should aim to beat the defender, if they can't they should aim to off-load the ball, if they can't do that - they should aim to pop the ball off the deck, and finally if they can't to that - they should present the ball on the floor. One of the support players should take the ball, the remaining support player becomes a defender. And so the sequence repeats. That's it, lets get to work.

General

Line Speed Sevens - Rugby Dril...

Tell the players the following.... Players will advance as a line, and as one hit the pads. The pads can also advance as a line. If the pads do advance, they should return to their starting positions. The players hitting the pads just the end of the lines, ready to go again. The nest line should go when the players on the pads area ready. Don't forget to change the players on the pads.

General

Offside From Kicker Defensive ...

Drill to practice defensive organisation when the kicker must put their teammates onside.Set up a grid roughly 30m long and 30m wide.Set up three players in a line out with a scrum half 2m away and a kicker roughly 10m away (red players).Roughly 20m along the touchline set up a group of players (blue) ready to receive the kick and counter attack.One player in the line out passes the ball down to the scrum half who passes to the kicker. The kicker kicks the ball upfield, and runs to chase. The players in the line out can only defend once the kicker has run past them.The group of players receiving the ball (blue) gather the ball and begin to counter attack, aiming to score on the try-line behind the defenders (yellow cones). The defenders must organise themselves to defend and stop the attack by making a two handed touch on the attacking ball carrier.PROGRESSION:Practice doing high kicks and long kicks to give the defending players an idea of how much time they will have to get organised.Overload the players receiving the ball (blue) to have more players than the defendersAllow the attack to offload instantly after the touch has been madeAllow the attack more than one phase to attack so the defence must practice re-organising after a breakdown.

General

counter SESSIONS
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Effective Counter Attacking - ...

Can your team counter quickly? A speedy attack after a turnover is a great way for your team to score as the opposition will be out of position

Phase Play and Continuity

Continue to build the phases in your play and get your team working as an unit to offer support with this session!

Improving Attacking Kicking, Catching and Chasing

Improve your team's ability to attack from a kick with this kicking and catching games session - covering 3 key areas of your team's game
counter ANSWERS
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Counter Rucking | Sportplan

My team of 10 yr olds are great at rucking whilst in posesion but have not grasped the idea of counter rucking. they seem to make the takle and then stand off and not counter ruck. any suggestions on drills that might encourage them to counter ruck?

graham brown Coach, Australia

looking for a counter rucking ...

looking for a counter rucking drill please under 13`s

Archived User Coach

how do you counter ruck effect...

is there any drills

kev appleton Coach, England

Scrum half approach to the ruc...

I'm a new player trying to learn to play Scrum half. I have a general idea of how the game works having played back positions a few times. However, I'm confused about one thing (and this might be dumb but bear with me). The thing is, I'm pretty quick. I can usually make it to a ruck before the forwards have fully formed it. When this happens I don't really have a good sense of where to stand in order ot have good access to the ball but also avoid blocking other forwards coming in to ruck.  Usually I've already surveyed the field (to my newbie abilities anyway) and made a decision as to what I want to do with the ball, yelled the call on my way to the ruck, etc, so that puts me in a mindset that I REALLY want to be close to the ball so I can make it happen.  Should I just keep my distance instead until the ruck is fully formed? Where specifically should I be standing and how quickly should I get there? Thanks!

Archived User Coach

Is Bridging Illegal?

Simon My son's PE teacher has told him that Bridging is lieegal for the U13 to U19 group. His Club coach has been encouraging its use in games for two seasons. I can see some of the dangers but also the advantages Who is right is it banned or can it be used? Paul submitted by email

Archived User Coach

How is the best way to counter the opposing full back?

How is the best way to counter the opposing full back entering the line and creating havoc with our man to man defensive pattern?

Archived User Coach

What tactics can be used when chasing a box kick?

What tactics can be used when chasing a box kick? In addition to the blind side wing chasing the kick, what patterns could be used to regain possession or limit counter attacking possibilities?

Archived User Coach

Any view on counter attacking a full back entering?

Any view on counter attacking a full back entering the line against a man to man marking system?

David Coach, England

How to coach using counter attack from turnover ball?

I need to coach a progressive session of 20 minutes for how to establish the principles of counter attack from turnover ball in contact coaching the palyers to counter attack. Any ideas please?

Trevor Brice Coach, England

How can my forwards counter a wheeling scrum?

My props (and I ) lack front row experience

Archived User Coach

I'm looking for a couple of drills for counter rucking?

I'm looking for a couple of drills for counter rucking and mauling to suit U11's..... any guidance?

Archived User Coach

Making the full-back position an attractive proposition.

Making the full-back position an attractive proposition. Often over-looked, the full-back position is a vital player in anyones team if he is used and brought into the game. Does anyone have any technical/positional material to coach prospective players in this position?

Archived User Coach

establish principles of counter attack from a turnover?

establish principles of counter attack from a turnover all in contact

Archived User Coach

First time coaching U9 and U10s - anyone got any backline coaching tips?

Hi im a first time coach and is still getting the hang of how the technical details of the game works the back line is my department and whould like any help i can get to know what drills to do and anything helpfull in the backline im currently coaching for the under 9 and 10

Archived User Coach

How to coach league players to help transition to union?

Hi, I'm coaching my second team union (as i have injured my knee and cant play for the next few months) and the team consists of mainly league players, so they are rugby minded but will need help getting to grips with union - lineouts scrums when to and not to kick where to kick to etc. Any tips / ideas would be great.

Archived User Coach

Breaking out from the back

Can any coaches help me with exercises for counter attacking from the back?

Coach Sportplan Coach, United Kingdom

Drills and attack moves to counter a rushed defence.

I am looking for some drills and moves to coach a counter offensive against a rushed defence or a blitzing defence. I've had ideas of short kicks over the top.

tom burkett Coach, England

Using pads & contact shields -...

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....

Archived User Coach

Rucking Problems | Sportplan

My team is having trouble going past the ball when rucking. We are working on body heights and hitting past the ball but any suggested drills would be a great help.

Ian Stenson Coach, England

Playing against much bigger pl...

My under 13 school rugby team played against a school team that were much bigger than my boys. This was their first experience playing against players that were much bigger than them. What do we do for future matches?

Archived User Coach
counter COMMUNITY DRILLS
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Phase 2

Ruck Securer Drill

Kick Touch

Counter Attack- Realignment

Pillars counter ruck

Forwards vs Backs

Kickoffs

Tackle- Bounce- kick- Counter-Attack

Ruck and Roll

ferret drillTackle Counter Ruck 2v2 progress to more

counter WEB VIDEOS
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