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| FW: [american_rugby-news] Nigel Melville Direct |
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FW: [american_rugby-news] Nigel Melville Direct
From: american_rugby-news@yahoogroups.com [mailto:american_rugby-news@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Nigel Melville Direct
Sent: Tuesday, January 20, 2009
2:15 PM
To: american_rugby-news@yahoogroups.com
Subject: [american_rugby-news]
Nigel Melville Direct
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Scrumhalf
Passing Video
Posted: 20 Jan 2009 03:09 PM CST
A
couple of months ago I ran a scrumhalf passing session at our HP Center near Boulder. A member of
the staff videoed the session and people keep asking for a copy. It’s a bit
rough, but it gets across some of the key points you will need if you are
coaching the scrum half pass.
The key fundamental is the transfer of the ball from A (the scrumhalf) to B
(the first receiver) as quickly as possible. The ball has to travel in a
straight line (no backlift) at speed. This has to be a dynamic movement with
the power coming from the feet and the dominant arm – if you have questions,
post them…
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Texas
Scramble!
Posted: 20 Jan 2009 02:06 PM CST
 I spent last
weekend coaching a number of high school teams in Houston, Texas.
The plan was a general skills session for everyone followed by more specific
team preparation on the Sunday. The weekend was hosted by the Texas Youth
Rugby Association along with the Texas Rugby Union and my old friend Phil
Beck, the coach of Woodlands High School, along with coaches and representatives
from Katy High School and others – a real team
effort.
Of course, planning sessions for 17 to 19 year olds is always tough,
especially in terms of trying to work out how many players would attend
despite the valiant efforts of the organizers - early estimates varied from
50 to 150!
On Saturday we started the sessions early with around 150 players traveling
from all directions to attend including a new high school team from San Antonio and women’s coaches from Austin – a great turnout.
The sessions
included general lessons on handling, continuity and defense, I also threw in
a scrumhalf passing clinic and the following day we looked at team play.
I think the sessions were well received, but the biggest challenge was one of
logistics, trying to make sure that talking was kept to a minimum and
everyone participated. Fortunately, I was supported by a number of local
coaches who rolled up their sleeves and took an active role. Rugby is about taking part, not standing on the
sidelines taking notes!
Saturday night was another chance to meet local officials - of course, there’s
no such thing as a free dinner! It didn’t take long before we were deep in
local politics and to be honest the majority of the talk was of a growing
working relationship and immense optimism about the future of the game.
Thanks to all for their generosity and a great evening.
On the Sunday,
I introduced the teams to a simple playing structure that gave them an
opportunity to use their basic skills in a more coordinated way.
Overall, the most rewarding part of the weekend (and coaching in general) has
to be the improvements made by every player in such a short time. It is so
important that our young players master basic technique before progressing to
more advanced stages of skill development. Reinforcing basic technique
doesn’t have to be boring, it can be fun – if its fun the players will work
harder and longer without becoming bored. If you need a stimulus, introduce
some prizes and make it competitive!
Lessons from
the weekend include:
- I
need more weekends like this!
- Youth and high school coaches must be encouraged to
focus on basic technique, and must be provided with better resources to
deliver this.
- Coaches require more information on modern team play
and defensive organization.
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"Paul D. Ganey" <SCRFU@...>
pdganey
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