Position Advice

[i rushin]

im starting rugby this year. im 6 feet tall. 150-160 pounds. Ahh ive played soccer for a while so i can kick pretty good. and am pretty good at kicking a rugby ball. im also pretty fast. any advice given would be great. thanks

 

[Aedaphon]

First- Welcome to the forum!

I seem to be taking a lot of these recently so let's get to the question :lol:

To me you sound like you could make a good back three player (Winger/Fullback)- It's pretty rare to start straight at full back so you'll probably start a couple of games at wing. A good boot is a great skill to have in the back three and something that should come naturally enough if you've played a bit of football (sorry, English terms stick in my mind)

As a winger you should be there to:

a) Score tries- in a one on one you should be relied upon to run the ball in past anyone else

b) Receive high ball- try and get some practice in taking the really high kicks, fullbacks and wingers both have to be very comfortable catching and running/kicking back high ball

c) Tackling- You won't be expected to make many tackles but the ones you do make will be some of the most crucial. From the sounds of things you're most likely to slot in at fullback somewhere down the line so working on your last man defence/ using the touchline is something you should try and learn.

Just to contextualise how old are you?

Anyway hope this is helpful!

 

[LittleGuy]

im starting rugby this year. im 6 feet tall. 150-160 pounds. Ahh ive played soccer for a while so i can kick pretty good. and am pretty good at kicking a rugby ball. im also pretty fast. any advice given would be great. thanks

How old are you i rushin? You seem quite lanky(you weigh anywhere from 2-10 pounds more than me while having 7 inches in height ) if your young you might still bulk up in which case even Centre might be a possible position for you in the future, otherwise I agree 100% with Aedaphon's assesment start out on the wing or at fullback.

 

[i rushin]

im 16 . its snowing a **** ton here. so im just trying to workout as much as possible. and focus on passing, kicking the ball (like drop kick and the bounce one), and getting around people in those 1 on 1 situations. were playing touch league right now. and im learning a lot. and am getting pretty good at sucking the defense in. anything else i should work on?

 

[i rushin]

ordered a few more balls and a tee. so hopefully this summer after soccer conditioning in the spring i can practice my kicks.

 

[User1245]

im 16 . its snowing a **** ton here. so im just trying to workout as much as possible. and focus on passing, kicking the ball (like drop kick and the bounce one), and getting around people in those 1 on 1 situations. were playing touch league right now. and im learning a lot. and am getting pretty good at sucking the defense in. anything else i should work on?

Your training sounds something for a fullback too, Aedaphon's assessment is spot on.

If you're fast and can draw the man well, you'd enjoy joining the line at FB when you're on attack. Being good at grubber kicking (think you called it bounce kick) can be effective when joining the line too.

At this stage you're position will depend on how good your team mates are. As mentioned don't be surprised to find yourself on the wing if they're all established.

And remember defence is the major attribute for a back. You could be inexperienced or have the side step skill of a prop, but if you can tackle you'll make it into the team.
Opposing players can sniff out a weak defensive player quicker than a politician can sniff out a brothel.

I would go as far as saying that defence and tackling should be your base skill coming in as a new player. Good defence puts the opposition under pressure and forcing them into errors.

 

[Aedaphon]

im 16 . its snowing a **** ton here. so im just trying to workout as much as possible. and focus on passing, kicking the ball (like drop kick and the bounce one), and getting around people in those 1 on 1 situations. were playing touch league right now. and im learning a lot. and am getting pretty good at sucking the defense in. anything else i should work on?

... This just reminds me I need to bulk up. You're two years younger than me, probably a back, and I'm barely 20 pounds heavier than you :lol:

Anyway, you've got plenty of time to bulk up, starting a mass building programme will help you in contact, just don't overdo it. You're a back, first and foremost you should concentrate on the technical aspects of your game- extra muscle is just a bonus.

In my opinion sprint/interval training does wonders for any backs (or forwards who think of themselves as an 8th back like me ). The faster you are the more likely you are to finish your tries and interval training will do wonders for your fitness.

I mention fitness because even as a winger (the player with lowest necessary work rate) you should still go looking for work by coming off the centres' shoulders if there's no ball coming to your wing.

 

[Toby Faletau-Jones]

im starting rugby this year. im 6 feet tall. 150-160 pounds. Ahh ive played soccer for a while so i can kick pretty good. and am pretty good at kicking a rugby ball. im also pretty fast. any advice given would be great. thanks

Centre, Wing, Fullback, Fly half, scrum - half.

 

[Toby Faletau-Jones]

ordered a few more balls and a tee. so hopefully this summer after soccer conditioning in the spring i can practice my kicks.

*Football grrrr