Kicking drill
Under the Crossbar
Force a compressed, driven strike that exposes any weakness in leg speed through contact.
- Time
- 15 minutes
- Players
- 1 to 4 players
- Intensity
- Medium
- Equipment
- Ball, goal posts
- Space
- Close to the posts
- Positions
- Fly-halves, fullbacks
Setup
Goal posts and three to five balls. No tee needed if you run it as a punt or drop punt.
How to run it
- Stand close to the posts and kick the ball so it passes under the crossbar - a low, driven strike with no lofting.
- Start a few steps back and move 1 metre closer after each success, so the required trajectory gets flatter and flatter and the strike has to get purer.
- Stop the set on a miss and reset one metre back.
- Do 4 sets of 5 balls.
- This drill was introduced by Dave Alred specifically to build quad strength and it kills the habit of leaning back to lift the ball.
Coaching cues
- Maintain leg speed all the way through contact
- Head down and forwards
- Strike with the instep bone, not the toe
Common mistakes
- Leaning back to lift the ball, which is exactly the habit this drill exists to kill
- Reaching for the ball with the toe instead of striking with the laces
Related drills
- Goal Kicking Quiet Eye RoutineBuild a repeatable place-kick routine around a quiet eye on the ball.
- Touchline Channel 50:22Build the low driven spiral that wins a lineout in the opposition 22 from your own half.
- Kick TennisGet high-volume punting and high-ball catching with zero retrieval walking.
- Box Kick with Live ChaserAdd the pressure and the chase that a solo box kick can never give you.
- Partner Punt LadderBuild punt distance and accuracy at four times the rep density of solo kicking.
- Find the Gap GrubberExecute a grubber inside a live attacking shape against real defenders.