Functional Roles of Attack

I believe college teams in USA college rugby are to one dimensional when they are on attack.

I often see big boys going at it with boring crash it up off the halfback type tactics. Teams do it because they think it’s the safest option. There’s nothing hard about throwing a halfbacks pass to the biggest guy on your team to hit it up. Don’t get me wrong it can be very effective at this level. However it’s boring to watch.

When coaching attack I like to teach the players about the 5 functional roles that must be performed by certain individuals.

The 5 functional roles are:
• Distributor
• Playmaker
• Decoy Runner
• Penetrator
• Support Players

The Distributor is the guy who gets the movement going. He is often the halfback or even the flyhalf depending on the width of your penetration. The Distributor must get the ball out cleanly and quickly to the Playmaker.

If this doesn’t happen your attacking system will be on the back foot from the word go.

The Playmaker is the pivot of the attack. He is the decision maker and must have good vision and instinctive abilities. He must throw the pass to the player who is in the hole. He must have quick hands and also good reactions.

The Decoy runner is a very important part of an attacking system. He is the player who is going to create a hole somewhere in the opposition’s defensive line. He will create uncertainty.

The Penetrator is the guy who will break through the defense. He is the player who will provide the go forward that the attacking team is seeking.

The Support players are the one’s who create continuity and must be in close support of the penetrator. They must anticipate where the penetrator will engage into contact. The Support player must get himself into a position to continue the flow of the movement.

If all these functions are performed well it can be exciting rugby to watch. The 5 functions should not be only taught to the backs but everyone in the team. Today’s game requires multi skilled players. Backs have to be able to blow over at the ruck and forwards have to be able to catch and pass and run good attacking lines.
If the backs decide to go wide from first phase the midfield will be the primary lateral support players which mean they must provide the team with continuity. If this happens correctly the backs will be down 3 or 4 players for the second phase and that’s when the forwards must step in and take over the role of a back. It’s very important for forwards to learn the 5 functions. I love nothing better than to see forwards performing diamond balls, blockers and sliders to provide go forward off phase play.