Rugby: newsletter

We have open this thread to continue the discussion on Player Empowerment started in the Coaches Hot Tip in this month's newsletter. If you missed it, here it is again. There is no doubt that if you want your team to be successful, you need the players to make decisions on the pitch for themselves. We know that if a team is used to getting the answers to problems on the field from the coach, it will mean that they will hesitate and look to the touchline before commiting to an action and that, of course, will be far too late! The coach can still influence things but once the game has started it is a fairly minimal influence, during the game it must be the players who react to situations as they happen and make decisions immediatley. Therefore, it is essential to have leaders in the team who feel confident about making decisons in the heat of the battle. They need to know that even a wrong call is better than no call. They should feel that their coach will support them in making a call and, if it was not necesarily the best decision, will help them make a better one next time without being too critical. Ideally, the leaders and decision makers will be at key positions in the team where they can communicate with other players as well as influencing play themselves. Key positions are Numbers%3A 2; 4/5; 8; 9; 10 and 15. This is often referred to as "The Spine or Backbone" of the team. This is not to say that a good captain and leader can't be in another position but if they are, for instance an 11 or 14, they will need good co leaders in the key positions to communicate their decisions during a game. To develop this spine to operate as leaders, the coach should involve these players in discussions about how the team are playing - making them feel some ownership and responsibility for the teams performance. They could also be involved in unit practises, for instance the 2 and 8 could Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 occasionaly lead part of a line out practice, once the coach has agreed with them what the practice needs to achieve. The coach is not giving the players complete control but rather, allowing them to be involved in the process of team development. Obviously, the age and ability of your team can affect how far along this path you can go but, even with players as young as Under 8's, I have found that delegating some responsibility is a really effective way to build a cohesive and well functioning team! Let me know your thoughts on this type player empowerment. Good luck Simon

How can the Elv's help my team playing against more physical opposition at the rucks , scrums and mauls?

how would you employ the blind side flanker from a line out, both in defense and attack

need answers to driving maul i think player taking ball in to contact should bind on opposition. driving legs, 2 surporting players ignor the ball and bind on the defender every one then pumps legs, 2 further surport players can join, ball carrier slides back and rebinds on the 2nd or 3rd men. every one is in the correct position to drive if stoped ball carrier realigns with last 2 surporting players.

I would like to have a GOAL planning session and not sure what type of goals should be set for players over the season. We have a long term goal to be promoted but not sure how to set up shorter goals and what to advise people if they can think of any!!!

I am after some Line out moves? I want some different variations to try for the new season? Shortened lines also if available, i want to have the opposition asking quesstions?

I'm after a couple of back row moves and the defensive options to counter them. Any ideas???

Looking to open a bit of a debate. I was running a 'coach the coaches' course last night and I asked the candidates 'do you coach your players to run at the man? or run at space?'. There was a 50/50 split, the older coaches said 'the man', younger ones 'the space', and others who'd never played before 'both!'. What do you coach?

Im currently undertaking research into the use of a 6 week course of Pilates in preseason to see if it has an effect in preventing injuries throughout the season. Has anyone used Pilates during preseason and found it beneficial?

Does anyone have a player development sheet that can be used to have as an interaction tool between a coach and individual players, and give a basis for ongoing individual player development

Can someone please send me a copy of a player development sheet. Thank You

I am putting together a skills matrix of suggested/expected skills a child should have as they progress through the Continuum. eg, by under 7 a player should be able to do ABC, by under 8 they should be able to do DEF, by under 9 they should be able to do XYZ, etc. I want to break this down into novice, core and advanced, as well as positional (as they get older) Does anyone know of a format that exists like this already somewhere?

how do you do player profiling?what chart would you use and what website is there to get ideas?

The law says that a forward pass is one "thrown forward" "in the direction of the opponents' goal line" Does that mean that, if the ball is passed and the receiver catches it NEARER to the opponents goal line than from where the ball was passed that the pass was forward? (Leaving to one side any other touches of the ball that might have taken place.) Maybe an example is better. Player 1 passes the ball sideways - releasing it on the 22 metre line. Player 2 (with no other player having touched the ball), running from well behind the 22 metre line, catches the ball when it has travelled sideways but the ball is now 20 metres from the opponents goal line (2 metres further forward from the place that the ball was passed). Is that a forward pass or throw forward? And if not, why not?

Hello, My name is Jonna Berry, we just started a women's team in Ames, IA. We just finished our first season with 9 players, we combined teams with another women's team to play in matches this fall. We are having difficulties recruiting members from the community. We have posted fliers around Ames and other towns. Any other suggestions? Any suggestions as to how to get people to take this team seriously? Thank you for your time.