Alla inlägg under juni 2009
Dear Rugby Coach,
When the South African team mauled halfway down the field against the Lions, many felt the shockwaves, not least the Lions themselves. They seemed totally unprepared to deal with this driving force. So, is a good maul just too difficult to stop?
Not according to coaches like Jim Love [rapport on The Guardian]. The maul has been around for many years and is still in evidence right through the game. At a recent schools final at Twickenham, one of the teams similarly used a well-drilled maul to shatter the opponents.
The Lions forward coach Warren Gatland (who has a few set piece problems to work on as well) and defence coach Shaun Edwards have some thinking to do. A more cynical person might say that Edwards never had to face a maul during his playing career, so he might struggle to understand the mechanics.
Here are some thoughts anyway Shaun, with my compliments.
Yours in rugby,
Ricardo Rodriguez, Editor
1.Maul defence By RR
2.Developing/Game situation
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Better Rugby Coaching, VRS RUGBY, Djursholm; Stockholm
Email: ricardo@vrsrugby.com
Website: http://vrsrugbyfiles.bloggagratis.se/
© 2009 VRS Rugby Coaching.
A dynamic maul is a powerful weapon in rugby because it draws in defenders and maintains forward momentum.
Key points for a solid maul Keep it square.
A good maul will work most effectively if the drive is going forward. To do this, players need to drive forward as if they are forming a scrum.
It might be that the front player is facing the wrong way, say from a lineout. However, the other players should be keeping their hips parallel to the try line so their legs are pumping forward.
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A maul that stops is likely to be lost unless the referee can see the ball, or the ball can be released quickly. This means the ball should be worked to the back of the maul whilst the other players form a barrier between the defence and the ball. This needs communication and coordination.
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Communication.
A strong maul above all has a good communication. The players involved need to work the ball to the back of the maul and the players at the front of the maul need to keep the maul square.
All the players should be driving forward together, towards the opposition try line, using the combined force to out-muscle the defence.
The defence will either push back or try to turn the maul, so a mauling team has to be able to shift the point of attack or prevent itself become turned.
Individual work.
A maul, by definition, needs at least three players involved. The ball carrier, a teammate and a defender, all bound together.
There are three distinct skills a good mauling player can work on individually to improve his mauling.
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1. Leg driveDynamic steps, bending the knees and driving the feet into the ground to move forward. The stance should be wide, but not too wide to prevent the player being able to move forward quickly.
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2. Body heightGetting low enough to drive forward without losing balance.
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3. Ball positionAs far as from the opposition as possible, without turning the back on the defence.
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Triangle exerciseHere's a simple exercise to work all three skills.
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Extending the triangle exercise.
The triangle exercise can be expanded to work this.
Better Rugby Coaching, VRS RUGBY,
Djursholm; Stockholm
Email: ricardo@vrsrugby.com
Website: http://vrsrugbyfiles.bloggagratis.se/
© 2009 VRS Rugby Coaching.
*
The maul is a potent attacking weapon. It saps the defence's energy and spirit, whilst giving attackers space and scoring opportunities.
A maul is where one player holding the ball is held, on their feet by one or more defenders and has another player from their own side bound onto them.
Strategy
The maul has been one of the most notable attacking weapons developed since the penalty/lineout laws changed. A penalty hit to the corner followed by a catch and drive has been a popular and successful method of scoring 5 or 7 points instead of the previous 3.
Nowadays, though, good mauling sides are more prepared to catch and drive from much further out, sometimes even setting up a driving maul from a scrum.
What can't you do to defend against the maul?
Your best option is to stop the maul forming. Failing this, and unless there's a score or the attacking team move the ball from maul, the laws say a maul only ends when its forward momentum is halted for a period of 5 seconds.
Since the change to the ELV laws, you can no longer collapse the maul, so you need to halt its progress instead.
There are two ways to do this. Either stop it once it is going or disrupt it, maybe by not letting it get started.
Two strategies to prevent the maul forming
1. Tackle legs for no mauls
If a side likes to maul, then all your tackles should be aimed at bringing players to the ground as quickly as possible. Therefore all tackles should be leg tackles.
2. Stop the catch and drive
One of the most common starting points for a rolling maul is from the lineout. The best form of defence, apart from not allowing them to catch the ball, is to stop the "catch and drive" (forming a driving maul from the lineout catch).
One tactic is to tackle the jumper as an individual once the player has touched the ground. To do this, put a forward in the scrum half / first receiver position, so that he can drive in immediately after the jumper has reached the floor, adding additional weight and depth to the defence.
It's advisable to verify this tactic with the referee beforehand, so he is aware of your intention to make the tackle the moment before the maul forms.
Key ways to disrupting and stopping the maul A tight drive through the centre
The most basic way to prevent a maul is a tight drive hard through its centre. For some teams this may be enough to reduce the momentum.
In this instance, "tight" means the players working together, preferably bound together. They take short steps, with their hips below their shoulders, feeling the pressure coming through the legs and lower back.
Communication
A good mauling side is not going to drive down the same axis, especially if it is meeting resistance. Groups are going to roll off either side of the initial maul.
Your scrum half (9) has to redirect your players to where the maul has taken its centre of momentum.
Join as pairsPlayers should endeavour to join mauls as pairs. Again, this has the aim to stagnate the momentum of the maul.
A stationary maul is the key outcome. If the players hit together then this has more chance of achieving this than one player at a time.
Push and pull
If it is not possible to stop the momentum, then a slightly more high risk manoeuvre is to use "push and pull". The idea is to unhinge the drive by pushing towards touch from the openside or pulling into touch on the blindside.
The momentum of the maul will still be forward, but the attacking maulers could easily lose shape. The ball carrier may also become exposed.
Three steps to holding the catch and drive maul, says Jim Love 1. The braceMy two players closest to the opposition ball get into a low body position and "brace", that is they spread their feet and lock their legs.
2. Use the opposition
If the opposition start to get some momentum in the drive, we try to use their own weight against them.
We focus on pushing the maul sideways, towards the touchline. In my experience, most players in the middle of a maul won't know which way they are going and often contribute to this sideways movement.
3. Depth
With two players bracing at the front of the maul, we only allocate another two players to the maul. These two players get right behind the front two players. This results in a long, not wide maul.
Normally, I find that the four players in this formation with the right technique will hold six opposition maulers.
To use this tactic, your players must:
Talk to the referee
The player with the ball at the back of a rolling maul needs to be bound on with a full arm. The defending players should keep asking the referee if the ball carrier is still bound properly. They need to be ready to pounce when and if the referee suggests not.
Referees will also become more aware of the validity of the rolling maul during the game.
What are you allowed to do?
Here are some interpretations of the Laws, as taken from the IRB website.
These are two questions asked by the New Zealand RFU. This should help decide how to stop the initial drive, before it becomes a maul.
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Q1. Team A wins a 5 metre attacking scrum. The number 8 detaches with the ball. The blindside flanker (6) binds on immediately and they drive towards the line.
A defending player drives in low and wraps his arms around the legs (knee height) of the number 8, who still has the flanker bound to him. The number 8, still in possession of the ball, is brought to ground.
Ruling: The defender has not formed a maul, nor has he collapsed a maul.
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Q2. Team A wins a 5 metre attacking scrum. The number 8 detaches with the ball. The blindside flanker (6) binds on immediately and they drive towards the line.
A defending player, while remaining on his feet, grasps the jersey (shoulder region) of the number 8, who still has his flanker bound to him, and immediately brings him to ground.
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Ruling: The defender, if he has not bound (by definition) to the ball carrier (number 8), has not formed a maul, nor has he collapsed a maul.
Since there is no attempt in either case to bind on to the number 8 then there has been no maul formed, so it is legitimate to bring the two players to the ground. This can also be used for lineouts.
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Better Rugby Coaching, VRS RUGBY,
Djursholm; Stockholm
Email: ricardo@vrsrugby.com
Website: http://vrsrugbyfiles.bloggagratis.se/
© 2009 VRS Rugby Coaching.
Developing the session
The training session can be developed as follows:
The session can be developed further by playing the following lineout game.
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Better Rugby Coaching, VRS RUGBY,
Djursholm; Stockholm
Email: ricardo@vrsrugby.com
Website: http://vrsrugbyfiles.bloggagratis.se/
© 2009 VRS Rugby Coaching.
* Training session* Maul defence By RR Ricardo Rodríguez
This session is designed to introduce ways to defend the maul to new players, or as a warm-up mauling drill for more able players.
What you tell your players the session is about
What you tell your players to do
What you get your players to do
Practice 1
Practice 2
The training session can be developed as follows:
Putting the skills into a game situation
The session can be developed further by playing the following lineout game.
Coach's notes:
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What to call out
What to look for
What to think about
please, contact me under week 26Th at Årsta Fältet, Stockholm
[Swedish Rugby Academy]
Better Rugby Coaching, VRS RUGBY, Djursholm; Stockholm
Email: ricardo@vrsrugby.com
Website: http://vrsrugbyfiles.bloggagratis.se/
© 2009 VRS Rugby Coaching.
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