Up as one

A game sense 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: 10 minutes
Players: 8 to 20
Space: 30 x 20 m
Kit: 6 cones, 2 balls
Pitch: Fine on hard ground

Setting it up

A line of cones for the defence to start on, with attackers ten metres away holding a ball.

How it runs

The attack passes along their line. The defence walks up together on the first pass, keeping level with each other, then touches whoever ends up with the ball. Do it at a walk until the line holds its shape, then a jog, then properly. The one thing being coached is that they go at the same time: one child charging out on their own leaves a hole either side of them that nothing else on this list can fix.

What to watch for

Go on the pass, all together. Nobody leaves before the ball does
Stay level with the two either side of you
Talk the whole way up. If it is quiet, nobody is connected

Make it easier

Walk it
Three against three so there is less line to hold

Make it harder

Attack gets an extra player so the defence has to slide
Start from a turnover

What it looks like when it is going wrong

What you can see from the touchline, then the one thing to say about it.

One defender three metres ahead of the rest with a gap beside them: Get back in line. You go when they go
The whole line coming up in silence: Talk. Tell the one next to you who you have got

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.