Slow ball, quick ball
A ruck and maul drill for U12 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
- U12
- Time
- 11 minutes
- Players
- 12 to 24
- Space
- 35 x 25 m
- Kit
- 8 cones, 1 ball
- Pitch
- Wants a forgiving surface
Setting it up
Two teams. You referee and count every ruck out loud.
How it runs
Ball away inside three seconds and the attack gets a free play with the defence held back. Slower than three and the defence gets a free advance of five metres. Five minute halves. They will hear the difference between quick ball and slow ball in about ninety seconds.
What to watch for
- Quick ball comes from the placement, not from the scrum half
- Arrive before the tackle is finished, not after
- Defence, hold your shape while it is slow. The reward comes to you
Make it easier
- Four seconds
- Touch rules with a simulated ruck
Make it harder
- Two seconds
- Bigger reward for the defence
What it looks like when it is going wrong
What you can see from the touchline, then the one thing to say about it.
- Blaming the scrum half when the ball is slow
- Slow ball started at the placement. Watch who went down
- The defence breaking shape while they wait for the reward
- Hold the line. Your five metres is coming
Safety. The clock creates urgency so watch body positions closely as they hurry in. Age grade rules on everything. Stop for anybody going off their feet.
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 U12 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.