Coaching Youth Rugby

CHAPTER 2

MAKING PRACTICES FUN AND PRACTICAL

This chapter discusses small-team games and ball work to introduce young players to some of the principles of rugby while having fun.

You are ready to take your first session with a group of boys and girls of mixed size and physical ability. Some may know a bit about the game, others may know nothing: your task is to get them playing a game that is based on rugby while using a rugby ball. However, you must realize and accept that it is going to take a long time for these players to learn the full game of rugby, and the early activity will contain enough if there is lots of running with the ball in different types of rugby-related games.

Your introduction may be no more complex than giving each two players a ball and getting them to pass it one to the other anywhere within a marked area. At this stage you are simply trying to get them used to the ball's shape, and the first coaching point may be to pass and catch using both hands. Once they appreciate that this ball can behave oddly, you need to organize them into little games to get them running; too much 'chalk and talk' at this stage is not what they came for.

There are thousands of small-team games that have been invented and used by teachers and coaches all over the world, but this should not stop you from developing your own version(s), and there is no copyright to prevent you giving it/them your own name. You might even ask your young players to re-name an activity - even to come up with a game of their own that contains the key elements of what you are trying to achieve.

The ones who have seen rugby before will no doubt want to warm up because that is what adult players do. In fact they probably don't need this, and their normal activity at school and at play is unlikely ever to be preceded by a formal warm-up. However, you can be responsible for starting a habit that will be very useful as they progress in the sport. The main benefit at the early stages might be that it prepares the players mentally for the activity that is to come, it raises the heart rate quickly, prepares the body and muscles for the activity, and it may just help to prevent injury.

Whatever the game is, have a set of rules and encourage your players to play within those rules. A basic requirement must be to bring a sense of fun to the exercise while there is a maximum degree of activity and all-round involvement.

Do start with small numbers in teams, and increase those numbers only when the players' skills demand it. There is little point in having over-large sides, and excessive numbers are the main reason for the game breaking down. Ensure that you have plenty of balls available, and aim to use most of them whenever you can. Young players want to handle the ball!

Once all of this is covered, plan to ensure that there are not too many players in the same space. Only experience will assist you in getting it right, so arrange for just a few to be in a grid/working area until you get a better idea of what is safe.

Pitch, grids and channels.

The new coach may not be used to grids and channels, but they offer an area of work where he can be in control of many young players at the same time. And before your first planned session ever starts, set yourself a target of really attempting to increase the skills of all your players all the time, and spotting, then praising, good play. 'Good play' can mean many things to many people, but try your utmost to empathize with the less-able players, and understand that one good pass or an extra effort to get to a spot can be an enormous inspiration to such a player if the coach recognizes it and comments on it. Never forget your better players, but pay attention to the youngsters who do not find the game easy, and let them know that you have spotted their success.

Feedback to any player is vitally important, but especially so to youngsters. Try to develop a degree of precision in what you say, because the more information you offer, the more the message will sink in. Rather than a vague, 'Well done' to a player, try to add specific praise, something like, 'Well done, you gave an excellent pass that was weighted nicely, and you have clearly learned from the last handling session'. It does not take much longer, but the recipient of the praise will know clearly what he has done correctly.

Then try to question youngsters. Ask for their opinion on why they think something went right or wrong. They will be stronger for attempting to analyse the game, and may well learn about skill more readily if they have some input on how it is being used. This is not to suggest that there is a free-for-all debate! Choose your moment, and work hard at developing players' comments as well as their rugby skills. It is not easy, so be prepared for answers that are not quite what you are looking for - and do have patience.

At all levels of coaching you must also be able to spot when something goes wrong, and try to put it right with advice or relevant practice. In the early stages of the game the errors will be fairly straightforward, and giving players an awareness of what is wrong may be enough at the level of small games. But as your coaching develops and players' skills improve, the coach will require a background of knowledge that allows identification of faults - and a repertoire of methods to try to rectify the problem.

In your planning, devise and use activities where errors are not that important. Even young players with limited rugby knowledge will know when they have dropped the ball, so they will not need a coaching report on such a fumble. When they are being introduced to the game, let them get on with playing, and don't stop the activity because of a dropped ball.

There are New Rules of Play (see Appendix) for Under 7, 8 and 9 players that have been introduced by the RFU to progress from 'Shaping the Game'. One of the principles behind the New Rules was to put the child first, and this is very important for all coaches. Instead of thinking about the full game of rugby then working that template down to age groups and beginners, try to start from the other end: offer exercise for all shapes and sizes that may one day lead to rugby. The exercise, team play and involvement should be enjoyable, and it ought to make all young players feel that they have achieved something in their activity. Mistakes are not at all important; far more important is a development of self-esteem among the youngsters, whatever their ability at the outset.

The Importance of Early Activities

Early activities are important to start the session, warm up the players, get them to concentrate on the activity, and introduce them to the basic skills of rugby.

This is a vital period of your session: if you do not capture the attention of the whole group now, it will become increasingly difficult to achieve it later. Get any session off with a bang, and ensure that the content is straightforward, manageable, and that there is some point to it.

Some elementary coaching points will be referred to that should be part of your coaching in these games and activities, but there will be further and more detailed coaching advice later in the book. At this stage you are simply trying to foster good habits, encourage exercise through various activities, and get across the rudimentary skills of rugby.

The games, practices and activities given here are a selection to suggest a range of what you can do in the early stages of introducing the game to youngsters. There are thousands of different activities, and many more variations on the themes.

Introductory/Warm-Up Activities

You are likely to be dealing with children who know little about rugby, and you have to grab their interest and enthusiasm from the first few seconds of the first session, and get them used to handling the ball. They will probably respond positively to little games that happen to be played with a rugby ball - and do not assume that there is anything wrong with these games if they have 'silly' names.

These little practices can be used at any time, particularly with absolute beginners who need to become comfortable with the odd shape and unpredictability of a rugby ball, whilst still having fun.

Individual Catching

Equipment: One ball per player. (If there are not enough balls, take turns and pass to a partner after a predetermined time or number of turns.)

Grid size: Keep a sensible space between players in case the ball is dropped and two players run to the same spot and collide.

Group numbers: One, if the number of balls allows.

Activity description:

(A) Throw the ball up and catch it.

Variations: Add a clap before catching. Throw the ball up and cradle it into the stomach. Add a clap before catching. Throw the ball up and catch it behind the back.

Skill development: Develop the catching so that only the hands are used for catching, then add a clap of both hands before the catch.

This can naturally develop into a competition to see who can make the most number of claps before the catch. Ensure that there is plenty of space between players as they will tend to throw increasingly high (to allow more claps), and they may have to move around more to get under the ball.

Activity description:

(B) Stand with the feet astride and pass the ball around the body to bring it back to the starting point. Practise both ways. Bring in a competition to find out who can...