Rugby drills
Rugby tackling drills
Rugby tackling drills should build technique in stages: footwork and body position with no contact, then kneeling tackles, bag work and side-on tackles at controlled speed, then live decisions. Neck strength and head placement come first.
- Drills
- 11
- Time each
- 8 to 20 minutes
- Group
- Contact and the breakdown
All 11 tackling drills
- Tackle Preparation Shadow LadderGroove the footwork and loaded body position you arrive in before every tackle, with no contact at all.
- Bag Shoulder ConnectionBuild shoulder-first contact and correct head placement at three tackle heights, safely and alone.
- Tackler ReloadGet off the floor, out of the contest and back into the line faster than anyone else.
- Neck Strength and Static ContractionsBuild the neck strength that protects you in every collision - the highest-value low-risk work in the library.
- The Swinger Head ReactionTrain slipping your head out of the way of a collision by moving your torso, not your neck.
- Kneeling Tackle ProgressionLearn front-on and side-on tackle technique in the lowest-risk position there is.
- Power Machine Repeat TacklesHold tackle technique together when you are tired, which is when it usually falls apart.
- Side-On Grid TackleBuild the side-on tackle against a moving target with a safe reset every rep.
- Rear Tackle Chase-DownBring down a carrier from behind when you have run them down in cover.
- Tap TackleBring down a breakaway runner you cannot quite catch.
- One on Three Tackle DecisionRead late which attacker is coming and get your head on the right side, at zero speed.