Simon Jones - Know the Game: Complete Rugby Skills

Contents

Understanding the game and rugby language

The pitch, the positions and choosing your role

Lateral (sideways) pass; Running and passing; Catching a lateral pass; Spin pass; Overhead pass; Scrum half pass

Catching a high ball; Catching a pass in threes

Drop kick; Place kick; Chip kick; Punt kick; Grubber kick

The main ways to avoid being tackled the side-step and the swerve

How to respond to a tackle from an opposing player, and how to make the three main tackles the side tackle, the front tackle and the rear tackle

What to do when youve been tackled; Going to ground and keeping the ball in play with the ruck or the maul

Good teamwork and how you can achieve it

The five principles of play and creating a game plan

When using this book, concentrate on one coaching point at a time. Practise each point until you have mastered it before moving on to the next one.

You do not need to work through the book from cover to cover. Choose a skill you want to work on and practise it until you are happy with the outcome.

PART ONE : PASSING, CATCHING AND KICKING

Do you want to play professional rugby, earning fame and fortune? Perhaps you can imagine playing rugby for your country in front of thousands of people, or maybe you just want to play the game well and enjoy it .

Whatever your ambitions, you need to start by learning some very important basic skills (called key skills) and, if you become really good at them, it will allow you to play the best rugby you can .

This book is designed to help you progress by providing a series of key skills. These include passing, catching and kicking practices that you can do in your back garden or a nearby open space, either on your own, with a friend, or with your brother, sister, mum or dad!

All you need is a rugby ball (size 3 or 4 are the best sizes until you are a teenager) and something to mark out a small area it could be your hat, scarf or jumper if you have nothing else.

You need to practise each skill regularly, even after you become good at it! This book will show you ways to challenge yourself by making practices harder.

Please remember that, because the rugby ball is shaped like an egg, when it bounces it can go in any direction. This is part of the fun, but you should be careful to practise where the ball wont cause any damage or go into a road if it bounces in an unexpected direction.

WHAT MAKES A GOOD RUGBY PLAYER?

Concentration

Confidence

Fitness

Quick reactions and foot movement

Good handling of the ball

Ability to read the game and adapt accordingly

Courage

SCORING IN RUGBY

To win a game you need to score more points than the opposing team, and you need to be able help your team to score those points. You can only score points in the following four ways:

Touching the ball down behind the opposition try line = 5 points (called a try).

Kicking the ball (which is placed on the ground) between the posts and over the cross bar after a try has been scored (called a conversion) = 2 points. The kick has to be taken in line with where the try was scored.

Kicking the ball through the posts but above the cross bar with the ball placed on the ground when your team has been awarded a penalty = 3 points.

Kicking the rugby ball between the posts on the half volley (called a drop goal) = 3 points.

The posts in rugby look like the letter H with two upright posts and a cross bar between them.