The fundamentals of the game

And yes this is going to be about rugby with parallels into the business world - I can talk mildly intelligently about almost one of those subjects :)

England rugby great Martin Johnson recently spoke about the All Blacks and what makes them so good - he stated 'the All Blacks capitalize by not making errors, doing everything well - those are what people call "the basics", the fundamentals of the game'. Rugby (as with most sports) is all about the basics, and the basics of rugby are pass backward, run forward, retain possession and support your team mates. Sure there are a few more components to to the game but bottom line is about those basics.

Over the last couple of years I have been fortunate enough to help teach the game I love to an amazing group of kids in Cary, NC. This has been our first season with tackle and in a just over a week we will see how good we have been as coaches when we play the Carolina Cup at an amazing rugby facility in Pinehurst. It has been awesome watching the kids grow an appreciation of the game, Applesauce started not knowing anything about rugby but now he is starting to see the field, Jess is one of the best tacklers we have and is not scared of anyone, Michael has stopped stopping when he gets passed the ball and looking for the gap - now he is running straighter to make one (and passing the ball), John is killing it in U10 and just won't stop smiling and Harrison and Jude were still practicising yesterday whilst a couple of the coaches enjoyed an adult gatorade (i.e. beer). There are too many great kids to mention here but they know who they are - the club has more than tripled in size in the last 2 years from 15 kids to over 50, from touch to tackle and we will continue to grow, and continue to look for sponsors and team mates :)

The one thing we have focused on as much as possible, apart from respect for the game and respect for each other whilst having fun, are the fundamentals of the game. Get the ball wide, run straight, be there in support, get back when you are on defense and don't turn your back on the ball. It seems simple but it is not, however they are getting much better. The ball is starting to lose it's kid-magnet ability so they are not all being sucked into where it is, more and more kids each day are starting to see the field. Working on the basics, pass, run forward, support, pick and go, keep moving towards the try line, run forward, keep up the pressure, don't make mistakes, get the ball wide, run straight, support, recycle the ball quickly, get it wide, get across the line, force the ball then get back to halfway and start all over again. Come up in a line in defense - don't get sucked into the balls gravitational pull, trust the person beside you can make the tackle but be ready to support if they cannot then get the ball, recycle it, get it wide, score, run back to receive the ball and repeat.

Simple stuff really - just the basics done well, that is all you need to do. K.I.S.S.

Rugby teams are a lot like a sales organization when you look at them as two parts that make the whole. Forwards are analogous to an operations team and the backs, well they are the over paid sales people obviously :) The forwards are the ones that do the hard graft in the trenches, they are the ones moving the ball north south, hitting up, grinding away, getting turf one yard at a time then passing it wide to the backs with their fast footwork and clean jerseys do get the glory and score the try :)  Well it used to be more like that, these days some of the backs are bigger than the forwards and they will jump in the trenches for a second or two, and some of the forwards (especially the hookers) seem to think they are backs. Either way when forwards (operations) and backs (sales) work as a team to a goal then they will succeed as a team as long as they can do the basics well. All the GPS trackers, practice sleds, lead tracking software, complicated game plans that correctly executed will lead to 'operational excellence' are a complete waste of time and money if you can't perform the fundamentals.


As per usual this weeks post is completely unresearched and the opinions here might be able to be justified but I severely doubt it as I know the person who wrote this and generally his opinions are, well, idiotic. I would apologize to anyone who did not understand the general context of this post, but I am not going to. It's not that hard to understand and it is not all about rugby, I don't like baseball (or as I call it American Rounders) but I loved Field of Dreams and the movie was not just about the game. Finally this week a big shout out to the Cary, North Raleigh, Raleigh, Clayton and Charlotte rugby teams heading to Pinehurst on the 20th. Play well, have fun, run straight, pass wide and be there in support. Claymores for the win :)

Work hard, play hard and earn your inspiration

Happy Poets Day