Set Piece Skills drill
Brake Foot Rehearsal
Groove the hooker's brake foot sequence for the scrum engagement.
- Time
- 10 minutes
- Players
- 1 to 6 players
- Intensity
- Low
- Equipment
- None
- Positions
- Hookers
Setup
A marked line on flat grass. No equipment, no partner, no opposition.
How to run it
- Walk through the sequence on your own: on crouch, get your shoulders above your hips and place the brake foot forward; hold; on bind, air-bind without moving the foot; on set, remove the brake foot and step in.
- Do 3 sets of 10 sequences.
- The brake foot adds stability and helps protect the neck from axial loading.
- Check your union's current scrum laws for exactly when it is required.
- This needs no opposition at all - it is purely a nervous-system pattern, which makes it one of the few genuinely safe things a hooker can rehearse alone.
Coaching cues
- Brake foot planted, not floating
- Head stays neutral through the transition
- It comes out on set - never on bind
Common mistakes
- Removing the brake foot on bind rather than set, which is the commonest brake-foot penalty
- Leaning forward past the toes during the crouch
Related drills
- Front Row Binding UnitBuild a connected front row that carries its own weight, with no opposition at all.
- Partner Throw to TargetGive a hooker a live receiving target at real lineout heights and distances.
- Post ThrowBuild lineout throwing accuracy against a fixed target you cannot argue with.
- Wall Throw Grip and ReleaseBuild the lineout throw at every realistic distance against a wall target, alone.
- Core-Driven Throw PrimerTeach yourself that lineout throwing length comes from the trunk, not the arms.
- Lineout Distance RotationHold throwing accuracy constant as the distance changes, front to back.