Maul a-peel

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If you have control of the maul with the ball at the back, you can continue to attack close to the maul by “peeling off”. This keeps your forward momentum going and pressurises the fringes of the defence which may not be in position to stop the peel because they are engaged in stopping the maul. This is a good session for forwards.

Warm up time: 5-7
Session time: 8-10
Development time: 10-15
Game time: 15-20
Warm down time: 5-8

What to think about

This is a core skill but do not expect immediate results. So why bother with it? Because as your mauling develops over time, your players will be able to drive into the soft underbelly of the defence more and more. Mauls are mostly developed from a catch and drive at a lineout. Therefore, this is an excellent “add on” to lineout work. You can catch and set up a maul in lineout training and then the players can work on the next stage - peeling off from the maul.

set-up

Rip and roll off a moving maul to attack the edges.
Maintain a low body position, driving forward, with support players binding just before or on contact with opposition.

What you get your players to do

Put three attackers in a triangle shape within a 5m square, with the ball carrier at the front, putting the ball on his hip (see picture 1). He faces forward in a low, driving position with two other players bound onto his sides. Put two defenders less than a metre in front of them. When you say: “GO”, the three attackers drive forward, with one of the back players aiming to rip the ball out and run with it or rip and transfer to the other team mate.

Development

Put three attackers and two defenders in a 10m x 5m box, with a ruck pad holder in each corner of the defensive end (see picture 2). As before, the attackers go forward and when one breaks off, the ruck pad holder at that corner comes forward and the attacking player drives into him. The other attackers need to come in to support. Add another attacking player if necessary. Remove ruck pads for more realism.

Game situation

Put four attackers near one edge of a 15m x 10m box and three defenders just in front of them. A fourth defender stays on the back (try) line. The attackers aim to score. If an attacker breaks free, the defender at the back can come forward. Attackers are not allowed to pass the ball, only rip it. If an attacker is tackled to the ground, ruck over and set up a new maul. Play full contact. Encourage the players to peel off the maul to create go-forward.

What to call out

“All three players must be constantly talking to each other” “Aim to keep your hips up the pitch when driving forward in contact” “Bind onto the hip to drive the other players forward”

Dan Cottrell

Dan is a practising RFU Level 3 coach and coach educator. He coaches with the Bristol Bears DPP programme, is head coach of Bristol Schools U18s and the Rugby Performance coach for Bristol Grammar School.

He was head coach of Swansea Schools U15, Young Ospreys Academy, assistant coach with the Wales Women's Team for the 2010 World Cup, director of rugby for Cranleigh School, Surrey. He played for Bath, Bristol, Esher and Clifton, South West division, Gloucestershire and Surrey.

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