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How the 1-4-4-4-1 can translate to professional levelA lot of these principles of 1-4-4-4-1 make sense in the modern game. Can the principles behind it translate to the all reaches of the game, professional and amateur. Analyst Nick Bishops investigates in his latest article.
Halfbacks can be big fellas tooIn today’s game at every level, getting the ball off the ground and to a target as quickly and accurately as possible is a key part of building Attack momentum. Something all players should be able to do. An ex halfback himself, analyst Dave Ellis (ellisrugby), explains how effective the quick ball can be and some tips on how to improve your ‘Halfback’ pass at home.
‘Bending the line’ with the blind-side wing & two lines of attackAnalyst Nick Bishop builds on Dave Ellis a simple back door ‘bending the line’ option to a decision-tree with multiple variations. It puts the question to a key defender and asks him to find the right answer.
How to create forward-thinking innovation in your set-piece attackAt the start of the 2019 6N tournament Jones predicted the emergence of a ‘new breed of player’ in the evolution of the professional game.
6 months later Nick explores how this is starting to occur.
Bending the Line‘Bending the line’ in an attack. Analyst Dave Ellis has been intrigued by the term and what it means to an Attack. He details in this weeks article.
on Attack
Space - the final frontierFinding space on the field – all 6969 sqm of space and that is not including the in goal, is a challenge for most rugby teams at all levels. Ex Blues and Connacht coach Dave Ellis provides some insights into what is ‘space’, where to find it and how to exploit it.
on Attack
Desde Twickenham: Los pormenores estratégicos del uso del pie en zona de ataque rival utilizados por InglaterraDesde que Eddie Jones asumió como head coach a principios del 2016 el equipo de Inglaterra ha disfrutado de los beneficios de lo que es hoy en día probablemente el mejor ejemplo del “uso del pie”en el juego moderno a nivel mundial. El haberse alejado de esta clara Fortaleza que el equipo posee, posiblemente influyo en la derrota sufrida en la final de la última copa del mundo contra Sudáfrica.
Inside England’s red zone kicking game from TwickenhamEngland have reaped the benefits of probably the best attacking kicking game in the world since Eddie Jones took over as head coach. Analyst Nick Bishop highlights the recent refinement of their kicking game inside the opposition red zone and the positive results against Ireland in their recent 6N match.
How to fake the kick and make the metres on exitsTypically, exit strategy involves the use of the kick, because the boot is the easiest way to move the ball upfield and relieve the pressure. Analyst Nick Bishop details how increasingly, exiting teams are looking for more subtle ways of finding space, to make their exits really count.
COMO AMAGAR UNA PATADA Y GANAR METROS CUANDO QUEREMOS SALIR DE NUESTRO TERRITORIOComúnmente muchos equipos usan el pie como una forma fácil y segura para salir de su zona de riesgo y aliviar la presión. El analista Nick Bishop detalla el como cada vez más los equipos buscan alternativas a esto para hacer que la salida se transforme en una herramienta de ataque.
How to “cheat” effectively in maul defence!Law-making in Rugby Union is constantly trying to maintain pace with developments in a fast-moving professional game and for the most part, it is struggling to keep up. Analyst Nick Bishop highlights the area of the maul has now replaced the ruck as a case in point.
The one-two-punch: how to break down a red zone defenceDefences often become more resistant in the red zone because they no longer have to defend the depth of the field, they only have to defend its width. Analyst Nick Bishop illustrates how a one-two play combination is effective in breaking down the red zones defences.
Como armar una secuencia de ataque desde formaciones fijas - al estilo de Joe SchmidtEl analista Nick Bishop detalla como los lanzamientos de juego de cuatro fases que el ex entrenador de Irlanda Joe Schmidt utilizo contra Japón en la reciente copa del mundo, resultaron ser un arma muy efectiva a la hora de atacar.
How to build an attacking sequence from set-piece - the Joe Schmidt wayAnalyst Nick Bishop details how ex-Ireland head coach Joe Schmidt four phase sequences proved potent against Japan during the recent RWC.
How to beat a bigger team - lessons from the lineoutOne of the major issues which can arise for rugby teams at all levels – but more especially for sides playing amateur football – is how to combat a differential in size and power. Nick Bishop looks at how to combat height and size at the lineout.
Why defence won South Africa the World CupUltimately it was defence which proved to be South Africa’s trump card for a third time at the 2019 RWC. Analyst Nick Bishop details the nuances of South Africa’s Rush defence that proved so effective
Go Forward and DominateIn his 1st piece for The Rugby Site, ex All Blacks Analyst, Blues and Manu Samoa Defence coach Alastair Rogers looks at one of the main Principles of Play in the game which applies to both sides of the ball – Go Forward.
Options - Are they in your attack plan?Teams who want to develop their attacking game need to have multiple options in their attack plan. The complexity of your plan depends on your personnel and the level of the competition you are playing in. Analyst Dave Ellis (Ellis Rugby), looks at an example of a whole team attack shape "Aussie Box’, and its options, that can be used at every level of the game.
on Attack
Breakdown Policy - Do You Have One?What is a breakdown policy and Why should you have one? In his latest article, Ellis-Rugby Analyst Dave Ellis explains how England’s Breakdown policy was more effective than the All Blacks in their RWC semi final.
England vs. New Zealand – what a difference a week makes!Only seven short days separated the All Blacks’ attacking success against a rush defence versus Ireland and their failure against England’s version. Analyst Nick Bishop explains how the Speed and accuracy of the analytical process helped England learn and adjust their defence to blunt the All Black’s attack.
The influence of an offload gameAs Offloads are having a growing influence in beating strong defence setups, in his latest article, Analyst Dave Ellis looks at the fundamentals to a successful offload.
on Attack
How the All Blacks are looking to beat the rush in JapanAll Blacks Attack coach Ian Foster had a point to prove against an Andy Farrell coached defence, and to his credit, he proved it. Analyst Nick Bishop examines how he did it.
How to cross the finishing line in the modern gameThis week Analyst Nick Bishop explores how the notion of the corner-flag no longer being ‘in touch’ has opened up the idea of acrobatic and spectacular three-dimensional try-scoring for the finishers in the RWC.
Missed tackles and their impactGood tackle technique varies based on the physical attributes of the tackler, position on the field, carrying style of the attacker or even the time in a match. Analyst Dave Ellis looks simple guidelines for a good tackle.
How Japan are finding an edge at the World CupJapan use the full width of the field on attack more consistently than any other side in the tournament. Analyst Nick Bishop highlights how it is not a matter of swinging the ball aimlessly from one side of the field to the other; rather, of accurate inter-passing between backs and forwards in midfield designed to exploit overloads in the wide channels.
How accurate skill execution can break down defencesAs teams look to develop their decision making abilities they sometimes neglect the importance of skill execution. The ability to catch a ball and deliver it accurately can be the winning or losing of a match. Analyst Dave Ellis looks at the effects of successful skill execution and neglect in recent RWC matches.
Angling for an advantage: scrum & maul at England vs. USAIn round two of the World Cup group match between England and USA, the American tight forwards outweighed their English counterparts by an average of over 2 kilos per man. In the event, it was nonetheless the England tight five who clearly dominated the power-based set-pieces of scrum and driving maul. Analyst Nick Bishop explains how and why in this week’s article.
Kicking - Using the box kickThere is plenty to consider to ensure the success of the Box Kick as an attacking strategy as Ellis-Rugby’s Dave Ellis illustrates with Conor Murray one of the world’s best.
Kicking and what Role it PlaysAs widely predicted, the RWC kicked off at the weekend and kicking played a key role for many teams both in their attack and defence strategies.
Analyst Dave Ellis from Ellis Rugby looks at the different forms of kicking and why teams use them.
All Black tournament preparation for the BoksPreparation for opposing teams on a one-off basis is relatively easy. The process of preparing for teams you play regularly, or those you are playing in a series of matches or in a tournament, can be far more complicated.
In those situations, you may not want to put all the cards in your hand on the table at once, but keep some secrets up your sleeve.
Analyst Nick Bishop details one of the key secrets New Zealand held back for their heavyweight clash with arch-rivals South Africa at the group stage of the current World Cup in Japan.
