Rugby Coaching Drills Video Library

Catching is the First Skill of Passing

Being able to catch is fundamental to rugby and the majority of sports. Catching in rugby is slightly different due to the shape of the ball and understanding the technical points of "How to catch" is a very important area for all young players. This clip explains some of the finer points and why a good catch is the basis of a good pass

Video Subtitles

The catch for me isis probably the most important because it's the start of the transition phase of the pass.Now the catch, early take.So if I'm passing to you Okay, so show me a hand. So we always show one hand. So it's actually quite hard to run two hands out isn't it. That's under 7 under 8 kind of stuff. So if the ball's coming from the right hand side, so it's coming from over here. We're looking at the outside hand, now I've got a Dan Carter hand because the lads know who he is and as it has a big influence on them. Thank you left hand out. So your opposite hand across your body. You see straight away Johnny's body squared up. Okay. So his body so his full is now, his chest is facing the ball. So if Jamie throws him the pass okay he's nice and square. So if it's wet if he if he fumbles it it's going to hit his chest now if we reach with both hands to reach up both hands. Okay what you'll probably find. So just give the ball back. They what you're probably find is when you're running your body going to run like this. So as that ball comes across as you throw it, you know, it's actually not facing our chest. So that squares our body up outside flops. We're nice and square and I want to start over reach for the ball and we catch the ball early. We've more recently brought more of an emphasis on self-organization and doing things to themselves and that they're driving the standards themselves and coaching themselves within the group as well with those kind of facilitating a lot more when we are catching what I was thinking about I think about how we catching it always going to snatch at the ball So how do you want to catch it? Okay, so we catch in that hands in the middle, handstogether so as we catch it together so I can transfer that ball, outside foot up, pass away. So we can do as a 3 now fast gone in will is going to receive the ball Boom turn hit the pass take your time and do the opposite hand to Three swap over, loads of reps, makes sense? So really retreat so on the one hand really out for it reaches the target brilliant, then it up or hit the body good. So again, it's a massive amount of high repetition really basic stuff. We're taking the running out of it so we can progress that in a minute. So you see Here is actually moving slightly. So it's game realistic. But the focus for me is that he's really reaching with outside hand. It's just had before it squares the body up to the target, which means it's hard to drop that ball. Good just a little bit of movement in the middle. Let's go. Brilliant Tim. So what we really try and do as well as crate that as we pass we move towards the ball. So keep remembering attack towards the ball. Okay, so we attacked the board and as we pass we follow the pass and the reason we follow the pass is that you know, if the pass is for a linebreak or to a breakdown we need to be in support. So it flows us towards the target or wherever that might be. So, you know, you get taught, you know, very young you reach with both hands, but it's very unrealistic and not many people do that again. So what we try and do is you create a situation where the outside hand is across the inside shoulder. So where should actually allows us to do is to square the body up to the Target and while that does so if you fumble the ball, it's going to hit your chest so you can read gather it and also where the as is we stay Square. So our first step is a non-square motion. So you're running forward which a lot of kids struggle to do then when we try to catch the focus is reach for the hand try and catch the ball. Try and catch the ball how you want to pass it so hands in the middle. Thumbs around central some people spend their hands a little bit. What we don't want is that the hands on the end of the ball so hands in the middle to reach for the ball, catch and our transition is the head so the head goes we turn our body as we turn our body we stay square and I hands finish the ball to the Target. So if your wrist if you pass quite wristy, that's not a problem as long as your hands finish the target if you pass, you know, quite mechanic, that's fine as well. As long as your hands finish at their target. Hopefully the ball will go there. So that's in a real short span. That's how you catch a pass.