Modern defense, just like attack, is a multiple phase effort. The first job of defenders is to slow down and stall the attack. Once the attackers are forced to deal with static ball and well-organized defenders, it is possible to launch defenses which aim to poach possession of the ball.
DEFENSE
These are the keys to success of pressure in defence:
Deny the opposition space to act and time to think.
Close down the space between you fast to force errors by the ball carrier
Tackle your opponents as far behind the gain line as possible.
Attempt to drive your opponents backward in the tackle and dislodge the ball to reclaim possession.
Attack the ball carrier; disrupt and halt opposition's attempts to retain and recycle the ball in rucks and mauls.
Slow the ball down until you recover possession.
Organise your defence to cover all possible attacking tactics by recovering your defensive positions quickly.
Attack your opposition at scrum, line-out, ruck and maul to make it difficult for them to use good, controlled ball.
Be hungry to reclaim the ball, and hunt for it in numbers
DEFENSE
Attack them at ball contesting point is first step in pressure/attack without the ball-fwds need to be aware that their efforts are the first steps in the pattern of attack/blitz without the ball-
offensive l/o on their ball Nil them on defense-
inside b/c cutting off inside options, drive them away from inside support
Dont let them get inside us, between us, outside us -
sacrificial act to help if this causes them to put it behind us
Defense is the best alternative to attacking with the ball
DEFENSE
Modern defense, just like attack, is a multiple phase effort. The first job of defenders is to slow down and stall the attack. Once the attackers are forced to deal with static ball and well-organized defenders, it is possible to launch defenses which aim to poach possession of the ball.
The ruck, in fact, is a method of returning the ball to play. It is during the tackle that highly skilled defenders have an opportunity to dominate the tackler and compete for the ball. I understand that this happens too fast for some people to see, but it is real, and it is a very fascinating part of the modern game.
The Lead-Scrape defensive pattern is a method of producing highly effective, improvised defensive mini-teams.
It depends on the sound fundamentals of all good Rugby defenses: good running lines, coordination between teammates and hard tackling. It does not involve the flanker breaking off quickly. This sounds like a one-out or Slide defense, in which inside attackers are left to covering defenders. The Lead-Scrape expects the defensive mini-team to take the attackers in front of them, whatever the difference in numbers.
If you embrace nothing else from this communication, take this on board: good defense starts with good running lines.
In the United States we are cursed with a Gridiron tackling legacy: square up, break down and stick your forehead in his numbers.
In Rugby, this is not safe and not smart.
When a Rugby player breaks down to tackle, he should be facing the next attacker. If the ball is suddenly shifted, he should be able to recover from his commitment to tackle and move on to the next attacker without changing direction.If you can imagine a single defender running a line a meter or so in front of , and parallel to the tackle line, you will understand that he will be able to move pretty comfortably from one attacker to the next as long as he stays inside the ball and refuses to be squared up or fixed. If he catches the ball carrier, he tackles. If the ball is passed, he moves on.
The main danger to the individual defender is a sidestep, switch or other interior attacking line, which might turn his shoulders off line and fix him.
If the first defender has a teammate determined to cover his inside hip, he is free to release all the dummies and switches to the inside man.
The first defender is called Lead and the second Scrape. Ideally they're joined by a third defender, Outside, who gives lateral width to the pattern.
Outside runs a line slightly behind Lead and allows Lead to commit to a tackle as far outside as possible. When Lead is actually committed to contact, Outside immediately moves up to mark the next attacker.
The goal of the Lead-Scrape is to produce a gang of defenders, running parallel lines, deployed roughly at a right angle to the tackle line and running along it.
This defensive wall is the signature of the pattern. If this defensive wall is not being built or is not at right angles to the tackle line, it is not a Lead-Scrape defense.
Attackers first reaction is to think that a long pass can defeat the avalanche of defenders building on the inside. Under normal circumstances this is a false hope. A 20 meter pass on a line parallel to the goal line might do so, but the opportunity to launch such a pass in a Rugby match is very rare.
By naming the roles, it is possible to improvise an effective gang of defenders very quickly. The first player on scene says, Lead! The second player now knows precisely how to support that decision: Scrape for you! And the third knows exactly what he must do, Outside!. In a heartbeat, an effective defense has been assembled. If they don't communicate, they are all guessing.
In the midfield, the inside center is usually Lead. He normally stays inside his opposite until the flyhalf has released the ball (at which point the defensive flyhalf can take off for the attacking inside center), and then turns to run just ahead of the tackle line and mark the attacking outside center.
If the attacking flyhalf is a fellow who likes to run with the ball or to create misdirection, then the turn to run the tackle line will come later and the defense will be much straighter. If the attacking backs employ a move-the-ball approach, the turn will come sooner.
If the defending backs have good inside support from their back row, they will also turn much earlier. The defenders can adjust the defense from a hard corner to a very soft corner by deciding to turn early or late.
The hard corner is much more aggressive and the soft corner can blur an attacking overlap. In between, there is a wide range of possibilities
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On the blind side of a scrum, the blind side flanker is Lead, the number 8 Scrape, and the blind side wing is outside. This organization allows the flanker to fly off the side of the scrum, extending the width of the defense, because the number 8 will defend his inside hip. The Lead-Scrape can be applied to any defensive situation in a similar way.
The Lead and Scrape is a system where the inside backs are responsible for attacking their own opposition backs, covering the #15 in the line, and piling-up on the Wing.
Without too much detail, the #12 is the key.
; He or she sets the pace of the defense (it needs to be fast, though, to work).
Essentially, 10, 12, and 13 come up man-on until they reach the gain line or the opposition #10 passes the ball. Then all drift outwards.
The difference between this and a conventional drift is that all of the inside backs continue to drift aggressively beyond the first man.
The #12's primary job is to get the man with the ball. #12 is the Lead.
He attacks each ball carrier so that he has an angle to tackle if the attacker makes a break to the outside, but slides off him when he passes the ball outward.
If the pass is a dummy, the #12 will, of course, overrun the player, but the delay in handling the ball outward allows the #10 to cover the break (the Scrape).
The Scrape is also responsible for side-steps to the inside and for covering switches.
Forwards and the #9 coming off the scrum, lineout, or ruck/maul provide additional inside Scrapes.
#13 is the Outside, staying ahead of the ball and threatening the #15 and, subsequently, the Wing.
Defending Wing makes sure he is outside of the attacking Wing, forcing the play back inside and making sure that he is not beaten outside.
In theory,by the time the attacking Wing gets the ball, he is confronted with one defender outside him and maybe three coming across from the inside.
In theory. If there is a skip pass, assignments change.#13 becomes the Lead and #12 the Scrape, and so on.
All defenses are vulnerable. It is important that we, as Coaches, understand that all defenses can be beaten and that we know each defense's true strengths and weaknesses.
The Lead and Scrape defense is, of course, vulnerable to a couple of ploys.
Like all drifts there is the risk of a loop creating additional players to cover, and it is also vulnerable to the trailer-stylemoves.
It is at risk from a double skip (5 out, miss 2, miss 5) which moves the ball too wide too fast for the inside backs to deal with.
This leaves the defending Wing one-on-one with the attacking Wing which, while not a critical problem, avoiding this is one of the reasons for running a Lead and Scrape in the first place.
Flat alignments on the part of the attacker make this system more difficult and at risk of being beaten outside, but when confronted by a flat line I would choose another defense, anyway.
The system seems to work best (I have found) against teams who either try to crack it by running a break or a half-break and against teams who want each backline player to handle the ball (no miss passes).
This seems to be a real shortcoming, but in reality we choose our defenses to beat the teams we play.
If the opposition is not capable of running aggressive loops or of quality skip passes, it works fine.
Executed at a high level it can overcome many of these difficulties, as well.
It is also useful whenever the attack sets up in a deeper alignment. This happens in America more than it should, and this defense can cover a deep alignment easily.It's real strength lies in the fact that, if it is thoroughly understood by all players, it can be run from any phase and even by players who happen to find themselves out of position.
Two aggressive backline defenders (even if they are (fast) Props) can defeat an entire backline that handles the ball.
Try that man-on!
Consider, for example, a sophisticated attack involving all six backs (Fullback and weak Wing in).
How do we defend this using the simpler defenses (man-on, drift, man-out)?
You will lose as there are two undefended backs you need to accommodate.
Lead and Scrape and similar manouver defenses can (and have) defeated this.
All that said, it is difficult to operate. It requires a high degree of communication between players and an absolute trust in the ability of the defender inside of you so that you can continue the drift.
When worked well, in conjunction with the use of other defenses at different times, it is useful.