My recent experience coaching and observing Sevens leads me to recognize that much has changed since I wrote the first manual and workbook in 1997.

This is not unexpected as the game has developed with the selection of bigger, stronger, faster, more skillful and more powerful players.

This has brought into question the relevance of the principles of attack and defence because the mode of attack and defence has changed significantly. As a result the principles of Sevens are applicable at the development levels but not at the mature levels. Because of the way the game is now being played the principles are now those for the fifteen-a-side game.

Application of the Principles of Attack and Defence

Principles

Quote – Principles are:

“A fundamental truth or proposition that serves as the foundation for a system of belief or behaviour or for a chain of reasoning”

So the principles of attack and defence in rugby are fundamental truths that are the basis of what has to be achieved to play the game successfully and they are linked to each other by a sequential “chain of reasoning” that is also an order of priority.

What are we going to achieve in attack and defence.

In attack teams are going directly forward to take away the time and space of the defence.

Equally the defence is doing the same putting pressure on the attack.

This creates a contest on and over the gain line to gain the greatest advantage. In attack getting over the gain line creates momentum to go forward and score.

In defence stopping the attack before they get over the gain line allows the defence to defend with momentum taking away the attack’s time and space forcing them into inferior options. The defence may take advantage and, eventually regain possession and attack.

This is unlike the past in Sevens when teams retreated to create space.

Teams who retreat to make space concede the gain line and allow the defence to seize the initiative.

Let’s now have a look at the options that have emerged for Sevens.

 

Principle One – Gaining Possession

Kick-offs – The Kicking Team

Outcome (1) From a contestable kick –off the kicking team retains possession.

You may recall that the law was changed to prevent the try scoring team from receiving the kick off because this enabled them to monopolize possession and continually be in a position to score further tries.

The Law change has led to kicking off to retain possession.

Key Factors

1. The ball must be in the air long enough for the chasers to contest the ball.
2. If the receiving team doesn’t position to cover all options the kicking team should play to these options. Amongst these are:
   1. A grubber just over the 10metre line.
   2. A long kick that bounces into touch.
3. Another option is to kick to an opposing player so the ball is coming from directly overhead and the receiving catcher is not in a position to run and leap to catch. This is a miss-match as the chaser will be able to leap to catch.
4. Key to retaining the ball is a chasing line from the touchline enabling the jumper to run towards the ball, leaping and turning back on to the opposition to either catch the ball or tap it back, not forward, to a supporting player.
5. Support in this general play situation should be behind and in front of the ball to gather deflections when the ball is not caught.
6. Once the ball has been retained the ball carrier should go directly forward so that all players can be behind and in a supporting position. By going directly forward the catcher will enable support to play down the channel from which they can either score or draw the defence across to the channel.
7. This creates space, as the defence has to come across to tackle. By doing this the defence has been drawn from space the attack can now pass the ball to and go forward and score.
8. A ruck or maul may be needed to create offside lines to push the defence back giving space to do this.

Non-contestable kick offs

Outcome (2) – Kick to force the receiving teams into options that will result in regaining possession.

Key Factors (These are the same as those for the defence line in most situations):

1. Send an aligned chase line of 5-6 players to prevent the opposition from penetrating using an overlap.
2. The remaining 1-2 players are sweepers to cover the opposition’s kick option.
3. Take advantage of the opposition feeling that the goal line is a wall and aligning with too little depth. This will prevent them from running onto their passes. They may even receive the ball standing still enabling the chasing team to take away time and space, make a tackle and regain possession to score.
4. Key to all this is the alignment of the defence, which is a flat arrowhead the point of which is the player aligned to the opposition ball carrier.
5. Identify who is tackling who and defend inside out, not square on to the ball carrier, so the ball carrier has only one option.
6. As the ball is passed along the attacking line each defender who is aligned with each new ball carrier becomes the point of the arrow and those on the side reload so that they can move into the tackle if play comes into their lane.
7. If a defender doesn’t reload by about 2-3 metres behind the gain line the defender will have to remain stationary so as not to get offside allowing the attack to have the momentum as they can go forward to receive and run with the ball.
8. Should the receiving team kick the ball the sweepers can counter attack taking the ball directly forward. The players ahead must reload quickly to get all six players in depth behind the ball carrier in a position to offer a passing option.

Line-out

Outcome: To retain possession so that all attacking options are available.

Key Factors:

1. Given that there are few lineouts in a sevens game practice a small number of options that are going to be reliable.
2. The key is to throw the ball to an unmarked player by outmaneuvering the opposition on the ground within the 5 and 15metre lines. Feinting forward and going back or feinting back and going forward are obvious options.
3. Maneuvering can enable the team to use an unassisted jumper or a throw to a player standing on the ground. This is usually at the front or back of the lineout where the catcher can catch the ball over the 15metre line. This is all based on having an alert thrower who should make the call.
4. Make sure the throw is down the middle line to avoid an overlap.
5. If the catcher does jump stabilize the jumper at the top of the jump to catch the ball. Don’t go up and come down immediately. Achieve stability by the lifters starting from a strong squat position, using their whole body from the legs to the hands, in order, and locking out at the elbows as the final step.
6. Using one lifter takes more practice while two lifters use more players than you may want to, if you are going to mount an immediate attack by going forward from the lineout.

Scrum

Outcome: To retain possession so that all attacking options are available.

As with lineouts there are few scrums in a game and time should be allocated accordingly.

Key factors:

1. Prior to engagement the prop should bind under and the props over so the hooker can release quickly and join the attack.
2. To give them stability forward and back: left and right the props should have the outside foot just ahead of the inside foot.
3. Following the ref’s call they should bind as far down the opponent’s body while still keeping the hips and shoulders square.
4. On the throw in the players drive forward by driving their knees down that will move their shoulders forward.
5. Maintain stability by locking up in this position.
6. The difficulty of a three-player scrum is winning controlled ball when the ball is immediately hooked behind the hindmost foot. This is especially the case when the defensive scrum pushes and doesn’t strike for the ball so the pushing contest is 3 vs. 2.
7. To overcome this when the team is throwing the ball in, he hooker may strike the ball so gently it can be trapped against the left foot, right foot if the ball is thrown in from the right (see below). This gives some control.
8. The other option is to put the ball in slowly and just push past the ball without hooking.
9. Further control can be obtained by the halfback putting the ball in on the scrums blind-side even if it is the tight-head side of the scrum. By doing this the player can move towards the ball while at the same time having the receiver of the pass in their line of vision. So on the right side of the field they would throw the ball in from the right and from the left side, from the left.
10. The problem area is when the ball is struck hard and ends up rolling some distance backwards. As the halfback moves to recover it the opposition halfback will be right behind. This will enable the defender to tackle the halfback immediately the ball is touched. The passing option is the dive pass.
11. In addition the first receiver may stand directly behind the scrum to pick up the ball.
12. When this occurs the scrumhalf is taken out of play along with the forwards in the scrum leaving the attack with the fly half with the ball and the remaining two players behind but away from the ball. The defence has seven players who are able to move forward in formation to close down the attack.

A controlled hook is the best option.

Principle Two: Going Forward

Outcome: To get over the gain line creating momentum to scoring.

Key Factors:

1. Because there are only seven players in attack the remaining six must work on making themselves available to the ball carrier all the time. This means that, should a player be out of play and not in a position to move into play they must move back or “reload” to do this.
2. As a result the aim is to have 6 players in support of the ball carrier. The easiest way for this to happen is to have the ball carrier moving forward getting over the gain line as soon as possible so the others can reload and move forward in support.

Lineout Attack

Key Factors

1. If the ball is won at the lineout and passed immediately to the attack line the players involved in the lineout are out of play until they reload.
2. Given that there can be 5 players – 3 forwards, a halfback/scrumhalf thrower and a back (blind-side wing) – inside the 15metre line a more immediate attack is to go directly forward and use support play and a maul down the channel. The halfback can go around the front or the back, wherever the players have moved from, to begin this forward movement.
3. Of course the aim is to score by making close quarter, “gut” passes to the receiver or a maul or, when the defence has been drawn to the ball, use the ruck or maul to create an offside line and move the ball to the space the defence have moved from to score.

Scrum Attack

Key Factors

1. To overcome the problem of players in the scrum being out of play when the ball is hooked attack the gain line immediately.
2. This has to be initiated by the scrumhalf going to the side of the running line by putting the ball in from the left and running to the right: and: putting the ball in from the right and running to the left.
3. Support can come immediately from the hooker if binding is under the arms of the props and the props cross bind on each other.
4. In addition the props should bind firmly on their opposing prop to delay their entry into the play.
5. Once again it is play down the channel using the gut pass, maul and ruck and moving the ball to the space left by the defence being drawn from the ruck or maul.
6. If the first receiver needs to position behind the scrum in case the ball is hooked very hard. Once again, if this player gathers the ball go forward to get past the four players in front and link with them.

Attack From Rucks and Mauls

It is recognized that the ball can be taken forward from within the maul. When the ball is delivered from the ruck or maul the following are the key factors that will result in the outcome being achieved.

Key Factors:

Assess where the attack has an advantage and move the ball there to go forward. Amongst the options are the following:

1. From all situations the player performing the scrum half role should attack to hold the defence to prevent the defence from immediately drifting with the ball when it is passed.
2. If the defence has spread out play straight ahead and look to break the gain line and pass to support following down the channel.
3. If the defence is grouped around the ball use support to clean out and free the ball. Go to the side in which the attack has greater numbers.
4. If the attack moves the ball to the side at which the defence is greater than the attack a ball carrier takes the ball forward and support should come from behind saturating the channel with more attackers than defenders.
5. Be alert as to where there is space behind the defence line i.e. they have no sweeper, and kick to this space and chase to tackle in a formation.
6. When passing the ball down the channel take the defence away from the channel and pass to support coming directly down it.
7. When passing across the field, hold the defence by committing each defender before passing the ball. Pull the pass back to create space for the next receiver so there is space to threaten the defence.
8. Remember that a miss pass that leaves out a receiver has 2 problems. The first is that the defender of the potential receiver can drift with the ball and help tackle the receiver. Secondly, because the ball is in the air for some time it can be easily intercepted and the length of time the ball is in the air gives the defence time to adjust.
9. In general play where there are no offside lines the following are options for the attack:
   1. Overload the channel on the far side of the field.
   2. Attack directly forward or at the first receiver.
   3. Kick behind the opposition defence and chase.
   4. Form a maul or a ruck to create offside lines.

DON’T pass the ball to the attack line, as the defenders will be standing there.

Principle Three: Support

Outcome: Be in a position to provide the ball carrier with options to move the ball forward.

Key Factors:

1. Create space so the attack can move forward by the support players reloading and the ball carrier going forward and attempting to penetrate.
2. Support Player Options:
   1. If the defence is grouped support to receive a pass laterally, in space across the field.
   2. If the defence is spread support to receive a pass, an offload or the ball carrier places the ball after the tackle so that the next player can pick up the ball and go forward. If there are opponents around the ball this player may drive them off the ball. This is called cleaning out. This enables the next player to pick up the ball and continue play down the channel. This is linear support.

In Support Play Linear to go Lateral and Play Lateral to go Linear

1. Once play gets underway passing, evasive skills and speed are the main skills underpinned by some key factors.
2. From the post tackle, ruck and maul the first ball carrier must commit a defender before passing. By running straight at the defender the ball carrier has left and right evasive options. It is important to run first and evade at pace. If the players steps first, because they don’t move forward, they will be easily defended.
3. By holding the defender the ball carrier creates space for the receiver and this pattern is reflected along the attack line.
4. License should be given to each ball carrier to attempt to penetrate and when this occurs support down the channel is essential leading to, as previously stated, gut passing, maul and ruck.
5. One difficulty occurs when the attack line is spread widely as, when a ball carrier attempts to penetrate, support is too far away to arrive soon enough.
6. This can be better than being too close and running beyond the tackled ball carrier thus being in front of the ball and out of play.
7. A solution is to have an attack line of 5-6 players and 1-2 attacking sweepers behind who can provide support quickly.
8. As explained earlier the aim of channel play, often called linear support, along with the maul is to draw the defence in creating lateral space for the ball to be offloaded to exploit the overlap.
9. A very skillful evasive player drawing in a number of defenders and then passing to attackers who have retained their spacing also achieves the overlap.
10. What stands out in sevens is that a half break, with support, is enough to create a try.
11. To achieve this players have to do much more in support than as the ball carrier, whose key skill is decision-making as to what best to do with the ball.
12. The support player must reload to be able to move into the ball while at the same time being alert when a teammate attempts to penetrate and to get there to a support and to continue play.

 Principle Four: Continuity – General Play, Ruck and Maul

Outcome: Form a ruck or maul to create space by grouping players around the ball and creating offside lines. Also use the maul to go forward.

Key Factors:

1. To avoid the defence taking away the space of the attack in general play use a ruck or a maul to create linear space using offside lines and to move the ball forward.
2. General play is play in which there is no defensive offside line and no space between the defence and the attack. A defender can position next to an attacker well past the line of the ball.
3. When a ruck or maul is formed players not involved must be behind the hindmost foot of their ruck or maul. This creates space for the attack.
4. To form a ruck you need at least one player from each team bound and in contact over the ball that is on the ground.
5. To form a maul you need at least 2 attackers, one with the ball, bound to one defender.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Rucks and Mauls

Rucks

1. The ruck can lead to quick ball however any delay enables the defence to reload and become organised.
2. The ball being on the ground cannot be handled until it is out of the ruck so, within the ruck; the ball cannot be moved forward.
3. Because of this the defence may commit to the tackle but if they can see no prospect of regaining possession of the ball they will reload into the defensive line.
4. Because the attack feels the need to commit players to the ruck to retain possession. When they attack those in the defence line often outnumber them. The solution is to overload channel play with those you have especially if you can play to a miss match.
5. Because of the lack of commitment by the defence the general play situation is now created with all the difficulties caused by there being no offside line giving the attack no linear space to go forward.

Mauls

1. Currently the predominant attitude is that mauls are not formed deliberately. They occur when a tackler tackles the ball carrier at the level of the ball looking to exploit the law that will result in a turnover at the scrum if the attack is unable to deliver.
2. The maul can be deliberately formed to avoid this situation. Under these circumstances the structure will result in both the ball being protected, back from the line of contact, and the participants bound and positioned as if they were in a scrum to move the ball down the field.
3. Delivery must be in accordance with the law and the scrum half should communicate this to avoid a turnover.
4. Mauls are not common in the current game apart from the involuntary ones and referees are unaccustomed to them. The tendency is to rule the deliberate maul as if it was the post tackle/contested variety and the maul prematurely being ruled as a turnover.
5. Under the current unsatisfactory situation in which the ruck is not rewarding the attack for gaining possession with time and space the maul has a significant role to play.

Continuity – General Play, Ruck and Maul

General Play

1. In addition to penetrating and drawing the defence to the ball carrier the other way of creating space is to form a ruck or a maul.
2. In sevens avoiding contact can lead to the attack backing up and not forming either of these formations.
3. This allows the defence to take away their space with each backward pass isolating each receiver from those who are ahead of them.
4. This is because the game is now in general play and, for the defence, there is no offside line. A defender can position next to an attacker well past the line of the ball.
5. Should an attack be faced with this situation the attacking option is probably straight ahead down a channel from the post tackle situation or to use a blind-side. This will force the defence to defend on the left and the right.
6. Other option is to make a recoverable kick behind the defence.
7. What should not be done is pass the ball to an attacker whose defender is standing close by.

 

Forming an Attacking Ruck:

1. The tackled player should react to the tackle in order to retain possession:
   1. If the tackle is to the upper body to prevent the release of the ball the ball carrier should use leg drive to go as far as possible. In doing this team mates will be able to assist by binding and driving forward. The ball can then be made available because support and momentum will result in the defence being be less able to create a turnover.
   2. By committing the defence and then attempting to step to the defender’s left or right the tackle is likely to be to the lower body. By turning in the direction the tackle the ball carrier is able to make a long place in the direction of support players who can continue play.
2. The player who last passed the ball or an attacking sweeper can recover the ball or drive through the line of the ball to bind with an opponent to form a ruck. A further player may be needed to ensure possession is retained.
3. Care must be taken to provide a hindmost foot, so the ruck is not over enabling the opposition to grab the ball.

 

Forming a Maul

1. Mauls are formed when players are grouped. This is most likely when receiving a kick-off and at a lineout. This doesn’t mean they cannot be formed elsewhere. Because attackers are too spread out a specific call would be needed if they wanted to form one.
2. Obviously numbers are limited however a three-player maul can be formed.
3. The ball carrier drives forward with the shoulder driving from down to up.
4. A second player drives in with the opposite shoulder and binds to form a wedge.
5. A third player drives in like a number 8 between the 2 man front row and takes the ball away from the line of contact.
6. The defence will tend to look around to see what is happening and a call is needed to exploit this. Use the scrum calls of “crouch”, “bind” – to keep one defender involved, and “set” or push. This will co-ordinate the mauls explosive move forward.
7. Be sure to deliver before the second stationary situation occurs.
8. The drive can be straight down the field or, if the maul turns, the runner can peel off and close quarter passing down the linear channel can take place.

The Impact of the Experimental Laws

The experimental laws have important implications for continuity should they be implemented.

The key components are:

1. By definition a maul is defined as the ball carrier and the tackler, on the ground, and one attacking player over the ball.
2. The two on the ground must exercise their options before a ruck is formed after which they are out of play.
3. The tackler can only play the ball after getting to his/her feet and can only attack the ball from his team’s side of the ball. There is no “gate” that previously allowed the tackler to attack the ball from the opposing teams side.
4. Players entering the contest will be penalized should they go to the ground.
5. As it is a ruck the ball can only be played with the foot.
6. Players can enter the ruck from their side of the ball and they don’t have to enter play from directly behind the ball. So long as they come from an onside position they can enter play.

Consequences of the Experimental Laws for Sevens

In my view these are no different than in fifteens it is just that more players are involved in fifteens.

Currently in the application of the law changes in fifteens has resulted in players entering the ruck going in upright and flailing at the ball with their boots.

As you would expect this happens once the tackled player has placed the ball and the defence attempts to drive through the ruck to upset the attack’s ball in this way.

The risk of a turnover is countered by the attack putting more players than the defence into the ruck to ensure ball retention.

Currently the defence’s actions indicate that it is unlikely to win the ball so the commitment is limited. Consequently there is little difference in play from ruck ball with the defence outnumbering the attack and the attack resorting to the previous practice of pick and go, or one pass and take it up or two passes and take it up.

The defence does not see the ruck as an opportunity to form a scrum-like formation, bound and duplicating the body positions of the scrum to drive past the ball and secure a turnover by performing as an airplane taking off.

In fifteens this will create a genuine contest for the ball, each team will commit 5 maybe 6 players and the team winning the ball will be rewarded with a less numerous defence line.

Few if any defences are willing to take this risk.

This applies to sevens however the defensive commitment is likely to be 2 maybe 3 players. There is likely to be a fourth player nearby so that, if possession is won the team can offload down the channel in linear support as 3-4 players will be near the ball.

Numbers make this less urgent in Sevens and limited numbers make the risk greater should the turnover not be achieved. So it could well be based on an assessment of the situation.

Principle Five – Apply Pressure

The principles already explained combine to include possession, field position, pace or speed and patience (the 4 P’s) to build pressure on the defence and

Principle Six – Score

The 4 P’s are a good checklist that players can refer to during a game to identify what is going wrong and what needs to be done for it to come right and score points.

Principles of Attack – Summary

So, under the current conditions in which sevens is played, the principles of attack that I originally put together for sevens can be replaced by the attack principles of 15’s making coach education much simpler in which knowledge in both modes of the game can complement each other.

There may be a place for the original sevens attacking principles in coaching less experienced players and younger players without a considerable menu of skills. But the end result should be to make the players proficient at an extensive range of skills applicable to both Sevens and Fifteens.

Be aware that fifteens has many more skills than sevens and by coaching players in the fifteens menu the coaches create many more options in sevens. The same is not true when you go from sevens to fifteens.

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