Clear the threat
A ruck and maul drill for U10 and up, with where the cones go, how it runs and what to say when it is not working.
Free to read with no account. It works at a pitch with no signal too.
- Age grades
- U10, U11, U12
- Time
- 11 minutes
- Players
- 8 to 18
- Space
- 12 x 12 m
- Kit
- 1 ball, 1 tackle shield per pair
- Pitch
- Wants a forgiving surface
- Indoors
- Fits a small space
Setting it up
A ball on the floor. A shield holder crouched over it. A clearer three metres back.
How it runs
Come in low, get your shoulder into the shield, bind on and move it back off the ball. Then a second player picks up. Eight each. Low beats big every time here and the smallest child in your squad will out-clear the biggest one if their body position is better, which is worth them finding out.
What to watch for
- Lower than them. Whoever is lower wins it
- Bind with both arms then move your feet
- Come through the shield, do not stop on it
Make it easier
- Shield holder stands upright
- Walk in from one metre
Make it harder
- Two shields to clear in a row
- Shield holder braces harder
What it looks like when it is going wrong
What you can see from the touchline, then the one thing to say about it.
- Standing up into the shield so it stops them dead
- Get your shoulder under theirs. Lower wins
- Hitting the shield then stopping, with no feet after contact
- Little steps after you hit. Walk them backwards
Safety. Shoulder to the shield, head to the side, never leading with the head. Shield holders brace and absorb only. Match by size and stop it if anybody starts launching themselves in.
The RFU's Headcase is where to go for what to do after a bang on the head. It is theirs rather than ours.
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The grades that can do it
What U10 rugby allows is the rule this sits under. Regulation 15 is reissued every summer, so the RFU's own rules of play are the ones to read for this season rather than a copy on somebody else's website. Ours included. Read against the RFU's 2026/27 appendices in August 2026.