Counter ruck
A ruck and maul drill for U11 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
- U11, U12
- Time
- 11 minutes
- Players
- 8 to 18
- Space
- 15 x 15 m
- Kit
- 1 ball, 2 tackle shields
- Pitch
- Wants a forgiving surface
- Indoors
- Fits a small space
Setting it up
A ball on the floor with one attacker over it. Two defenders three metres away.
How it runs
The two defenders arrive together, bind onto each other and try to move the attacker off the ball. Six goes then swap. Two people arriving as one is the whole trick and it takes a while, so keep it at walking pace for longer than feels necessary.
What to watch for
- Bind onto each other before you get there
- Arrive at the same moment. A gap between you and it fails
- Lower than the player you are shifting
Make it easier
- One defender
- Attacker stands upright and offers no resistance
Make it harder
- Three defenders against two attackers
What it looks like when it is going wrong
What you can see from the touchline, then the one thing to say about it.
- The two arriving a beat apart, so the first one gets shrugged off
- Hold onto each other on the way in, then you cannot split up
- Both upright and pushing with their arms
- Get under them. If your head is higher than theirs you have lost
Safety. Walking pace until the two arrive as one. Everybody on their feet, shoulders and arms only, no heads leading. Match by size across the whole group.
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 U11 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.