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Defence Policy - What Is It?

Richard Thorpe has been a professional player for a decade and is now an RFU level three coach. He see's defence as the key to success and in this clip explains what "Defence policy" means

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So what is defense policy? What it is, it's our defensive identity. Someone has to ask you and your Club. How do you guys defend your defensive policy is your answer? So we drift we Blitz we ran up and up team essentially once the rock is set. So what's a tackles been made and we got breakdown and we're going to fold into position. It's what we do from that point onwards. That's our that's what our defensive policy is what it isn't it's not how we tackle. It's not technically whether we're going to go higher with we're going to like chop. It's not how we compete at the breakdown and it's not how we fold into position. So that's not what we're going to cover tonight. We're going to looking specifically at what you do. Once you're in position, once you fold it around the Around The Ruck transition zones taken care of. How do we get off the line? That's essentially what we're looking to do. Okay, essentially the drift offense is an up and out. Defensive system. That's a Ruck. We've got an attacker here attacker here and attacker here. You're going to line up. On the inside shoulder of your of your second you going to come up and you're gonna go out and these guys are going to continue to go out you're responsible for the space outside you so as you come up, you're inside your inside. The fender is going to look after your inside. You're going to look after the inside of the next guy outside you You need to stay connected to your outside man. So as you come forward you need to be aware of what you're outside man's doing guy inside you is going to look after your Insight your going to protect the guy outside inside don't get in front of your Inside Man. So is anyone come across you want to be able to see the shirt number the guy inside you and once the ball is passed you keep pushing pushing forward and up. Anyone know why? Yeah, the attacker from drifting them supporting them inside. Yeah, essentially you're trying to trying to protect against any balls back inside. Yeah to keep pushing up and up and out. You'll have a full back here covering any any eventuality that they get outside you a misconception here with the drift defense the think there's a passive defense. So if we if we drift it means that we literally just drift along let them pass let them pass and we'll end up stacking on the gain line that actually at the highest level of the game isn't a drift offense adrift defense is line speed get off the line you're tackling behind the game line and that's got to be your own whatever whatever policy you incorporate. You've your aim has got to be the tackling behind the gain line. As long as you've got numbers the numbers down. That's when you can start to concede conceive the game Life sacrificed again line tackle them out wide, but you can still have line speed if the drift attack is up and out Blitz is the opposite up and in so when you're going to align yourselves, Sorry on us. I know this is basic for some people but let's just remind ourselves. The Ruck attacker attacker attacker we're going to align ourselves if you've got a but I've Garden bodyguard in place Alana cells on the outside shoulder the attacker because we're going to get off the line and we're going to come in up for off the line and in off the line and in