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Rugby: keep passing

keep passing DRILLS
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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

Keep Passing

Tell your players the following..... 3 players start on the right cones. The remaining 3 players will be running, they start at the top of the grid. The runner take the first ball off the player standing at the first cone, they pass it down the line while advancing to the second cone. At the same time the player on the cone, who passed the first ball, runs to the second cone on a loop to retake the ball. They remain at that cone for the runners to return. The same thing happens at the second and third cones. When the attack gets to the bottom of the grid, and they have finished all 3 lateral passing tasks - they turn and go again. Change the runners and players on the cones when you're ready.

Sevens

Ladders with Ball Handling

• The aim of the drill is to develop SAQ and handling the same time.

Agility & Running Skills

Keep Passing Sevens - Rugby Dr...

Tell your players the following..... 3 players start on the right cones. The remaining 3 players will be running, they start at the top of the grid. The runner take the first ball off the player standing at the first cone, they pass it down the line while advancing to the second cone. At the same time the player on the cone, who passed the first ball, runs to the second cone on a loop to retake the ball. They remain at that cone for the runners to return. The same thing happens at the second and third cones. When the attack gets to the bottom of the grid, and they have finished all 3 lateral passing tasks - they turn and go again. Change the runners and players on the cones when you're ready.

General

Closed Leg Pass Passing - Rugb...

The aim of the exercise is to develop 1 Step Closed leg pass to encourage the attacker to keep square.

General

Passing Box Passing - Rugby Dr...

Tell your players the following....... There should be one group of 4 players between each cone on the four sides of the grid. The ball carrying group will advance - passing the ball down the line. When the ball gets to the last receiver in the attacking line, they will pass the ball to the first receiver in the next attacking line. Simple as that - they should keep going. All four groups must go, in any one cycle of attacks - a cycle is 4 attacks. Progression: Add in one or two defenders, have them work from side to side - rather than closing down space and - don't forget to change the defenders into attack after some time in defence.

General

Keep The Ball Game Sevens - Ru...

Tell your players the following: One group of two players will be defenders, you might want to give them bibs. The attackers just need to keep the ball moving without getting touched while holding the ball. The passes can be forward. Attackers can move around the training area. If a player gets touched while holding the ball they and their partner become the defenders - the old defenders become attackers. If the ball is dropped, the pass is bad, or goes outside the training area - the player that made the mistake and their partner become the new defenders, replacing the old defence. This should be fun, but players should strive to control the ball, moving it into space and away from the defence.

General

Traffic Passing Warm Up - Rugb...

This passing exercise will keep large groups of players busy passing, running onto, and moving the ball in traffic without the need to spend large amounts of time standing around and doing very little. It's a little confusing to start with, but when the players get going - it's great fun and very busy. Create a large box, the size is up to you and can be varied depending on your coaching goals. Each side of the box should have 4/5 players, more or less if you wish, standing in an attacking passing line - ready to go. You'll need two balls, give one ball to the first player on one of the lines, and the other to the last player on the line opposite. The lines advance passing the ball down the line as they go - they will pass through one another. When the ball gets to the end of the line, the last ball holder passes the ball to the first receiver of the line closest to them - and that line advances. There should be two lines active at any one time, and two lines getting ready to go. I hope that makes sense!

General

Keep Ball Tag Rugby - Rugby Dr...

Players work in groups of 5 in a grid 10m x 10m, with 1 Ball per group. 4 Players work as a team to make 10 passes. The defender tries to tag a player who is holding the ball. Either rotate the defenders or if caught and then the tagged player becomes the next defender.

General

Wave After Wave Passing - Rugb...

Keep your player briefing, brief! Tell the players the following or have a demonstration group..... We have 1 scrum half, 4 runners and 3 defenders with tackle/ruck shields. The scrum half starts the attacking line by passing a ball from the ground at the first cone, to the first receiver in the attacking line. The defenders start 10 meters back and press up on the first 3 attackers, leaving the 4th attacker free. The attackers use quick hands to move the ball down the line, before the next cone. The last receiver sets the ball down, the attack line will have realigned, and the scrum half will now be on the second cone of the opposite side of the grid ready to restart the attack. The defenders rush 10 meters back and and once again press up on the first 3 attackers, leaving the 4th attacker free. They keep going until the end of the grid, turn around - and do the same working down the grid. Don't forget to change the defenders.

General

Chasing The Pass Passing - Rug...

Keep your player briefing short, and get the ball moving around the circle as quickly as possible. First have the players move the ball - clockwise around the circle, passing off their right hand. Then switch it, and have the ball move anti-clockwise around the circle, with the players passing off their left hand. Once the players have gotten into a rhythm of passing the ball, tell the players the following. The player holding the ball will become a runner, their job is to pass the ball and then to set-off in the direction the ball will be traveling, trying to get to their starting position before the ball does. They win if they make it back before the ball. The players win if they can get the ball back before the runner. The passers cannot miss-pass, the ball must travel through every set of hands. Each player in the group should have the chance to become a runner. Change the direction of the runner and the ball half way through. You might decide that the runner has to do a press-up or two, if they don't make it back ahead of the ball. And you may also decide that all the other players need to do the same if they do not get the ball back before the runner. You can further develop this game by making the circle bigger. This will push the runner and will increase the length of the pass required between each player. Just ask all of the players to take one or two steps back.

General

10 Pass game Warm Up - Rugby D...

2 teams  Bibs  Balls  One team must try and complete 10 passes in a small grid.  When the player has the ball in his hand he cannot move, the other team must try to intercept the ball to stop them completing 10 passes.  Defending team must stand 1 metre away from ball carrier. If the ball is dropped or intercepted its a turn over.  If a team knock the ball down its a knock on and the same attacking team keep the ball. 

General

Pass and Control Passing - Rug...

Keep you player briefing, brief. Get the players moving and training as soon as possible. If you feel it would help, have one group demonstrate. Tell your players the following: They work as pairs, passing the ball back and forth between one another. They can move anywhere in the grid, be as close or as far apart as they like. Passes may not be forward. The temp should be high, and ball carriers should not hold onto the ball for more than 3 seconds. When they hear the first whistle they keep working but listen to the instruction. On the second whistle the ball carrier executes that instruction. Instructions can include: Pass the ball between your legs, pass the ball around your back, pass the ball around your neck, roll the ball down your back and catch it, flick the ball over your head and catch it etc. These can be as simple or as complex as you like. This is about getting your players to control the ball, to be more comfortable handling the ball. This should be fun, but players should strive to control the ball and may even end up impressing themselves and others.

General

Passing under pressure Passing...

4 players line up next to each other about 5 meters apart. A defender with a shield is standing 10 meters from the 1st man (ball carrier).The ball carrier runs in a straight line towards the bag, and passes just before the bag touches him. The receiving player needs to keep his depth, as the player with the pad will move across to his line of running, and he will need time and space to pass the ball on to the next receiver.The defender must not press up, only move across, in a straight line.

General

Passing Central Passing - Rugb...

Keep your player briefing, brief - and get the players moving as quickly as you can. You may consider having a demo group. On your go: The player acting as the Scrum Half passes a ball to the grid on his right and then another ball to the grid on his left, both passes will be from the ground. Upon receiving the pass - each grid begins their 2 v 1 attack and the player with the tackle pad presses up in defence. When the player acting as the scrum half has completed their two passes, they join the attackers on either the left or right grid. The first receiver of each attack becomes a Scrum Half - or simply returns to the start of the grid to join a new attack as the first receiver. Players rotate positions e.g. Scrum Half, First Receiver, Second Receiver. Defenders can move forward and back, and side to side. Change the defenders often to give them a chance in attack.

General

Loop (L1,L2,L3) Passing - Rugb...

Keep your player briefing, brief! It's important to get your players working as quickly as possible. Lets get the ball and the players moving with lateral passing through the hands. Each training area only needs one ball, and that ball should start with the any of the two players at the very ends of the L. Tell players to move forward, passing the ball down the line. When the ball gets to the last receiver, that player will pass it to the first receiver in the next line that is waiting to go. They should advance right away. Allow the players to simply move the ball down the lines, don't mention the Miss Pass. After you feel the players are comfortable, tell them...... Any player can now call an L1,L2,L3,L4 - depending on their position in the attacking line. This means that they can pass and loop round the back of the rest of the attack to collect the ball and continue the attack. An example of this would be: L2, player passes, loops around two other players, and collects the ball in attack. Allow the players to discover, though questioning, the best possible way of executing and calling the (L) move. Players should change position in the line after each run.

General

Clapping Game Passing - Rugby ...

Tell your players the following. Lets just get the ball moving clockwise for a while, just to get the ball moving through the hands. After a minute or two, lets switch the direction of the ball. After another minute, tell them the ball can go in any direction, but...... The receiver must clap once before catching the ball - and the passing player must move the ball within 5 seconds. The passer can dummy, and if a receiver claps they must do one or more press-ups. If the receiver doesn't clap and receives a ball - they must do one or more press-ups following their pass. You can also play this game using a word like RUGBY. Each time a play makes a mistake they get a letter. The loser is the first player to get all the letters that spell RUGBY. Some teams and coaches have more interesting and colorful words to spell - I'll leave this to you. Have fun with this!

General

Passing in Contact Passing - R...

Keep your player briefing, brief! Tell you players the following...... Players will attack in groups of 2, so we have 2 v 1's. That's it - get them moving for a while - and remind the defenders that they can only move from side to side. After a while - tell the attackers that the ball carrier must take contact - and pass the ball out of contact. That's it - get the players moving again and let them discover how it's done. Don't forget to change the defenders.

General

Miss Pass (M1) Passing - Rugby...

Keep your player briefing, brief! It's important to get your players working as quickly as possible. Lets get the ball and the players moving with lateral passing through the hands. Each training area only needs one ball, and that ball should start with the any of the two players at the very ends of the L. Tell players to move forward, passing the ball down the line. When the ball gets to the last receiver, that player will pass it to the first receiver in the next line that is waiting to go. They should advance right away. Allow the players to simply move the ball down the lines, don't mention the Miss Pass. After you feel the players are comfortable, tell them that on their call they can miss pass (M1) a player in the line. So the first ball carrier might decide to Miss Pass (M1) the first receiver in the line, and move the ball directly to the second receiver. Any player, if they have the option open to them, can call a miss pass. Allow the players to discover, though questioning, the best possible way of executing and calling the (M1) move. Players should change position in the line after each run.

General

L With Defenders Passing - Rug...

Keep your player briefing, brief! It's important to get your players working as quickly as possible. Lets get the ball and the players moving with lateral passing through the hands. Each training area only needs one ball, and that ball should be with any of most players. Tell players to move forward, passing the ball down the line - they do not need to wait on any call by you. When the ball gets to the last receiver, that player will pass it to the first receiver in the next line - they should advance without delay. Allow the players to moving the ball along the lines. After you feel the players are comfortable, tell them that they can be as creative as they like with respect to passing e.g. miss passes, switches etc. Introduce one defender, let the defender drift - but they must start from around 10 meters back. When you are happy with one defender, add two, and finally three defenders. Keep the same defenders in place for a about 10 attacks, then rotate. Allow the players to discover, though questioning, the best possible way to respond to what they see in terms of moving the ball. Players should change positions in the line after each run. Don't forget to change out the defenders.

General

Building The Switch Pass Passi...

Keep your player briefing short and tell your players the following.... 3 attackers line up on the first three cones, the rest fall in behind. One attacking line will go at a time. The SH will work from near the top of the grid - off to the left. The first attacking line goes. The SH passes to the first receiver in the attacking line.. The ball carrier and the second receiver switch - using the top to cones as targets. They can..... Switch, dummy, pass to the 3rd receiver. That's it - let the players play.

General

Crossover Relay Passing - Rugb...

Keep your player briefing short. You may consider having a demonstration group. Give two players opposite each other, one ball each. On your call they will come forward, towards each other, sidestepping to avoid contact before passing the ball either left or right. There should be no forward passes and the players need to communicate to avoid both balls going in the same direction. When the receivers collect their pass - they do the same as the first set of ball carriers. Players that have completed their run and pass within the grid should join the end of the opposite line. Players should seek opportunity to pass off both their left and right hands.

General

Passing Along The Line Passing...

Simple hand drill that can be progressed onto many simple backline movements. 1 ball, 4 players, area of 20-30m by 20m 1st player starts with the ball who commences the sequence by running, 2nd player run from depth and receive the ball then pass to 3rd player who will do the same to the 4th. From this point the order will reverse to get another repetition through everyone's hands so you can score at the end of the grid.

General

Lateral - Switch Passing - Rug...

Using cones, mark out a training area 15 meters x 10 meters. Split your players into groups of 2. Allocate 4 groups of 2 to each training area. If you can, give each group of two their own ball. Have enough training areas to keep all of your players as busy and active as possible. Tell your players the following...... Players in pairs with a ball between them. The player on the left starts with the ball and passes the ball to the player to the right. The player with the ball then runs diagonally across the grid, while the player without the ball crosses/switches over behind the ball carrier, ready to receive the ball at the next cone. They continue passing left to right and crossing over in each grid until they reach the end. Once at the end they run back to the start to the right of the grid, practicing the same skill on the way back but without cones to guide them. <span style=&quot;text-decoration: underline;&quot;><em>Progression</em>: Add in a defender with a ruck shield, just to add a little pressure.

General

The Next Pass Passing - Rugby ...

Keep your player briefing, brief! Tell the players the following or have a demonstration group..... We have 8 static passers and one runner. There should be a static passer on each cone, eight in total. The 9th player will be the ball carrier. The ball carrier starts at the top of the grid facing the bottom. Moving forward they will take a pass off the first static passer with a ball, passing that ball to the player opposite to the passer. The attacker moves forward and does the same at the next set of cones, then the next, and then the next. When they get to the end of the grid, completing all 4 passes - they turn and start again. They keep going until told to switch with another player. Don't forget to change the runner.

General

Ten passes then... Passing - R...

Keep your player briefing, brief! Tell your players the folloiwng......... Players should be moving, staying around 5 meters part - running with the ball and attacking space. Players make 10 passes and then: Make figure 8 between legs. Partner does the same after another 10 passes. 10 passes then throw ball up and make a 360 degree turn to catch it before it hits the floor. 10 passes then throw ball overhead and catch it behind back. You might consider asking players to pass the ball with just one hand, off their hip

General

Passing right to left Passing ...

Strong grip, thumbs are out, hold the ball high with fingers pointing to the sky. Keeping your hips square pass the ball across your body, finishing with your hands nice and high - pointing to where you want the ball to go.

General

keep passing ANSWERS
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HOW CAN I IMPROVE PLAYERS ABILITY TO PERFORM THE LATERAL?

HOW CAN I IMPROVE PLAYERS ABILITY TO PERFORM THE LATERAL PASS ?

dean Coach, England

I have started coaching under 8. where do i start with?

I have started coaching under 8. where do i start with these bundle of energies? Any Videos coaching available some where?

Archived User Coach

RFU - proposed Mini's rule changes

RFU - proposed Mini's rule changes%3A All - just a quick straw poll%3A Have any CLUBS that you are aware of officially come out in SUPPORT of these changes? If not, have they come out officially rejecting the proposed changes, or are they adopting a "wait and see" attitude? Regards Stephe

Archived User Coach

Is sealing the ball at the tackle and ruck legal again?

Is sealing the ball at the tackle and ruck legal again?

Des Crowley Coach, United States of America

i am just starting to play scrumhalf could you give?

i am just starting to play scrumhalf could you give me some tips on how to be a quality scrumhalf

Archived User Coach

I am coaching the U11 this season. There are some significant?

U11 Rugby I am coaching the U11's this season. There are some significant rule changes from U10. Please can I get some advice on what lessons were learned from coaches who have been through a similar experience.

William OBrien Coach, England

This is my first year coaching Rugby and I am really?

This is my first year coaching Rugby and I am really struggling, I am coaching the under 8's team. The problem is their passing and catching skills require a lot of work but it is extremely difficult to keep them focused enough to work on these for any period of time, I would be grateful if anybody could offer any suggestions.

Archived User Coach

key factors of a miss pass

plaese tell me the key factors of a miss pass

Archived User Coach

u8s running sideways not forward!

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.

Archived User Coach

Start of season drills

I'm taking over as coach for an amateur rugby union team.I have taken a look around this site, but I keep wondering what to put emphasis on at the start of season. General fitness? rugby basics (passing, ruck, etcetc)Are there any complete season templates out there that I could change to my team's needs?thank you

Archived User Coach

Under 8 coaching drill

Looking to plan a 1.5 hour session for under 8. Do you have any advice on specific under 8 rugby union drills

Scott Coach, England

U6's coaching need of guidance

3rd week of coaching u6's any tips would be appreciated Thanks Asked using Sportplan Mobile App

Archived User Coach

Getting 9-10 year olds to spread the ball out wide

Getting quite frustrated that my u10's are not using the space on the pitch and tend to bunch up. Despite various drills and game scenarios to force them to spread out and pass to someone in space they revert in any game to bunching up around the ball and taking it back into the thick of the opposition rather than looking left or right! Any ideas how to change their ways?

Ian G Coach, England

What words would you say to your players?

what would you say to your players when it comes to half time ? (give detail if they were wining same as for losing games )

Shauniece Susan Lynette AhWing Coach, Australia

Spin pass for a 14-year old boy?

I need coaching points on how to spin passin a casual game how to quickly get it away

sarah milford Coach, England

Is there a U7s rugby union coaching plan for week by week

Is there a week by week coaching plan for the U7s? It’s my first time coaching and need some advice and plans. Where do I start? What do I do every week to get them ready for the season Asked using Sportplan on Mobile

Liz Coach, Australia

Looking for day 0 skills to te...

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.

Doug Jones Coach, United States of America

Players keep spilling the ball...

Players keep spilling the ball in the tackle, any drills for protecting the ball? Have tried the usual falling drills and tackling drills but in games the ball keeps being spilled forward in contact.

Archived User Coach

U10s organisation in defence. ...

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.

christopher jenkins Coach, Wales

Position discipline! | Sportpl...

I am a coach with an under 10 rugby side. Last season the team found it hard to stay in their positions (acting like a swarm of bees). Can anyone suggest how i can get them to stay in positions, particulary our backs.

Lindsay james Coach, England

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