Tackling drill
Rear Tackle Chase-Down
Bring down a carrier from behind when you have run them down in cover.
- Time
- 15 minutes
- Players
- 2 to 6 players
- Intensity
- High
- Equipment
- Ball
- Space
- 15m channel
- Positions
- All positions
Setup
A 15m channel on soft grass, one ball, with the attacker starting 3m ahead jogging away in a straight line.
How to run it
- Chase the ball carrier until you are within diving distance, then wrap your arms around their hips or legs.
- With your head to the side, make contact with your shoulder and pull your arms towards you until they are taken to the ground.
- Squeeze your arms tight and slide down their body - keeping your head to one side for the entire descent - to finish on top.
- That head detail is repeated in the coaching literature for a reason: the moment your head slips behind their legs as you slide, you are in the injury position.
- Do 4 sets of 5 each side at walking pace for two sessions before moving to jogging.
Coaching cues
- Head to one side, and keep it there all the way down
- Wrap the hips, pull them in, slide down
- Finish on top
Common mistakes
- Head slipping behind or into the back of the carrier's legs as you slide down
- Grabbing the jersey and hanging on with no wrap, so you get dragged and land badly
Related drills
- 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.
- 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.