Handling drill
Straddle Lift and Place Channel
Link a clean ground pickup to a long, deliberate ball placement.
- Time
- 15 minutes
- Players
- 1 to 10 players
- Intensity
- Medium
- Equipment
- Ball, cones
- Space
- 10m channel
- Positions
- All positions
Setup
A 10m channel marked with 4 cones, one to six balls.
How to run it
- Run at the ball low and straddle it with a foot either side rather than reaching beside it, then pick it up with two hands into your back shoulder in one flowing motion without stopping.
- Run the 10m staying low the whole way rather than standing up out of the position.
- Place the ball deliberately 1m in front of the far cone - a long placement, not a drop.
- Turn, sprint back and repeat off the other shoulder.
- Ten lengths alternating shoulders is one set; do 4 sets.
Coaching cues
- Straddle the ball, two hands, one flowing motion
- Stay low all the way across
- Long placement, not a drop
Common mistakes
- Reaching for the ball off to one side with one hand
- Standing tall between the pickup and the placement, which produces a short contestable ball
Related drills
- Unbalanced Pass RepsLearn to deliver an accurate pass from a poor body position, which is what games actually demand.
- Ball Familiarisation SeriesBuild the basic feel for the ball that underpins every other handling skill.
- Quick Hands and One-Handed CatchDevelop single-hand control and reaction, which is what makes an offload possible.
- Roll and RetrieveMaster picking the ball off the ground cleanly at pace, alone.
- Wall Pass ReboundBuild passing accuracy and reaction catching completely alone, off any flat wall.
- Solo Halfback Wall PassGroove the scrum-half clearing pass off the ground in one sweep, with no partner needed.