Sevens Attack Patterns

SEVENS.   4 – Attack Patterns

Sevens provides almost limitless opportunities for individuals and the team to create attacks through skillfull and strategic play. One responsibility of the coach is to decide between an aggressive confrontational approach based on keeping the defensive line onside and bringing tacklers in to a specified area, and the traditional approach of getting the ball quickly in to space and creating 1 v 1 opportunities which leads to a ‘free’ player and penetration.

Of course the best teams will have a bit of both, the confrontational group still being required to move the ball in to space as necessary, and the running/passing group needing to be effective at the contact if the rest of the game is to flourish.

There are certain principles that need to be followed, the most significant being the use of lateral spacing across the field to create one versus one situations and put each defender under pressure, combined with the necessary depth which creates the time and space to avoid contact or create contact under your terms.

From this basic set up several attacking concepts can be promoted. Firstly, it is a good idea to work in groups of three with the ball carrier being number 1 and the two closest players then completing the attack based on what decision the ball carrier has made. Generally the second player will have been the last player to pass the ball and he will support in behind the ball carrier in what is known as the “Pocket Player”.

If the ball carrier takes contact, he must get a wide base and attempt to stay on his feet and drive to pull in an extra defender where possible. The No 2 attacker ( Pocket Player)will react to the situation and be the second player in contact, cleaning out (straddling)/ driving the mini maul / dealing to the tackler so that the ball carrier can release the ball / ripping the ball and releasing or running / creating an offside line by forcing a ruck. The 3^rd player will come in and act as the halfback, generally clearing with a pass if under pressure, but also scanning to see if there are running opportunities.

If the ball carrier has taken contact under pressure and not on his terms then he may roll or pass the ball back quickly to the pocket player so that the ball may be cleared from the pressure zone. Another use of the pocket player is to receive a pass immediately behind an attacker who has run out of space or is running in to trouble, so he stops, passes back and the ball is redistributed to players not under pressure and who have regrouped for an alternative attacking option.

Attacking options must threaten through a change of pace and a change of angle by the ball carrier with the same applying for the support player. The support player can also provide a change of width prior to the ball carrier making his move so that the defender needs to make a decision whether to follow his man or to remain in his current defensive channel. The key to the ball carrier making the correct decision as to passing or running is for him to look in the eyes of the player he is running at. As soon as he gets that persons attention he knows that he has that player concentrating on him and he must change the angle and look at the next defensive player. If that player stays focused on the support player the attacker will try to beat his defender in a 1 v 1 situation or look for the inside man to pass to in the space he has just left.   If the outside defender looks at the ball carrier then he can pass to the outside support player who will have found a space to run in to by either hitting a short ball or a long pass.

This is a situation where the ball carrier changes direction and accelerates towards the next defender and the outside support player is manipulating his defender before the ball carrier changes his direction. The third attacker is the pocket player or the player bursting in to the space the ball carrier has left. Coaches should experiment in threes with scissor plays, a player wrapping and forcing with the third player hitting a hole. In every scenario the ball carrier needs two passing or decoy options and the attackers must threaten and either ‘hold’ a defender or shift him in to another channel and thus creating the space to be utilized. Obviously long passes across this group or behind a runner need to be experimented with as well.

The 1 v 1 situation quite often creates an opportunity for the kick attack as well. If the defence are under pressure and they do not have their ‘sweeper’ at the back a simple chip kick to oneself or another player so that it can be gathered by the attack team is an effective ploy.

The important point for a kick to be be successful is that the defence has been threatened and manipulated around and the attack is on the front foot before the kick is made. If you have a really fast runner you may even kick longer so that your man has a good chance of winning the race.

Team strategies can be devised based on the strengths you have within the team. A couple of really quick runners may require more outside space so the alignment is a bit closer and the running direct, giving the speedster space on the outside. A couple of big strong ball carriers could be used in midfield after the ball has travelled the full width and back from a set piece, with the runners targeting smaller defensive players with the aim of getting in behind them and continuing the momentum, or demanding an extra defender to enter their channel before the ball is released and the attack has an extra player.

A lot of the fun in coaching is working out a simple plan and then setting it up in the game. Talk to your players and see what they come up with. Ultimately though, the team who are prepared to work the hardest off the ball will be the winner!

SUMMARY

Skill set: long passing off both hands / beating a man in a 1 v 1 scenario / creating space and penetration with 3 v 3; threatening with the ball and without the ball, changing angle, changing pace, changing direction of the ball, / securing ball in contact with two players where possible.

Play plenty of games to improve the strategies and basic skill set.