U12 rugby drills
The last year of minis. The scrum goes to five, the hand off arrives and the caps come off the ruck. Your squad spends the summer being told about secondary school.
Free to browse. Pick U12 and that's the setup done. No account needed.
What the U12 game looks like
U12 keeps everything U10 and U11 had then takes the limits off it. The scrum goes to five players with two in the second row. The ruck and maul lose their caps on numbers, then the hand off comes in below the armpits. It's as close to the full catalogue as any grade gets: 119 of the 120 drills here are legal at U12. The one that's not is a tag drill written for U7 and U8, which by now they have long outgrown.
The scrum goes to five and the caps come off the ruck. Still no lineout, that waits until U14. Regulation 15 sets this out. It was never left to a coach's judgement. The U12 rules of play are the version that counts to a referee, they're reissued every season, so check yours there rather than trusting a copy on somebody else's website. Ours included.
New to the grade? What changes at U12 covers the five player scrum and the hand off.
What to work on at U12
- The five player scrum. Two in the second row for the first time. Still nobody pushing, so it's shape and binding rather than shoving.
- Defence that holds its shape. U12 attackers are quick enough to punish a line that drifts.
- Winning the ball back. The jackal, taught properly and legally, changes more U12 games than any attacking move.
- Moving the ball early. The step up to U13 punishes a squad that carries into contact every time.
U12 gets very nearly the whole catalogue, which is a mixed blessing. There's genuinely more available than a season has room for, so the useful question stops being what you could coach and becomes what you're going to leave out. The 75 minute sessions here exist because U12 is the first grade where an hour honestly isn't enough for a set piece session.
What is in Equal Play for U12
Pick U12 and the catalogue shows 119 drills: 28 warm-ups plus 91 exercises. Every one of them is written for the grade, so whatever you pick is something your squad is ready for. It's not a filter somebody can switch off by mistake.
| Theme | Drills |
|---|---|
| Handling and passing | 35 |
| Evasion and footwork | 27 |
| Tackle | 19 |
| Ruck and maul | 20 |
| Scrum and restarts | 9 |
| Kicking and catching | 7 |
| Game sense | 41 |
8 ready-made U12 sessions
Every one runs 60 to 75 minutes with the water breaks counted in, so the total on screen is the time you actually booked. Open one and make it yours before training.
- Scrums and restarts
- Match week
- Defence that holds
- Winning the ball back
- Move it early
- Getting outside them
- Kick and counter
- Four stations of hands
Common questions
What age does the lineout start in rugby?
U14. Regulation 15 has touch restarting with a free pass all the way through U13, so there's no lineout at any minis grade. Lifting waits until U15. An U12 session spent on throwing is a session spent on something the referee will never ask for.
What is different about U12 rugby?
The scrum goes to five players in a 3-2, the hand off arrives below the armpits and the caps on ruck and maul numbers come off. It's also the last year of minis, so a fair amount of an U12 season is quietly about being ready for U13.
How long should an U12 session be?
An hour still works for a single theme. A set piece session needs 75 minutes, because the five player scrum and the restarts off it can't be rushed safely. Both lengths are in the ready-made U12 sessions here.
Other age groups
What changes at U12 has the scrum and the hand off in it. What every age grade plays, side by side. The grade before this one is U11.
Equal Play is not affiliated with the RFU. Regulation 15 is theirs. We link to it rather than reproduce it so you always get the current season's version. Read against the RFU's 2026/27 appendices in August 2026.