CAMELOT U14 (School Year 9)
Our goal is to ignite a passion for rugby in your children by creating a fun and engaging environment. We value every child equally and ensure they all fall in love with the game. Alongside our exciting regular training sessions, we participate in matches and tournaments against other clubs.
Want to give it a TRY? Bring your young teenager for a free session on a Friday evening or Sunday morning!
Join a vibrant and friendly group dedicated to the joy of rugby and the thrill of learning new skills. We meet every Sunday and train every Friday during the season, either at Camelot or at other clubs for festivals and joint training sessions. Rugby is fantastic for young people, helping to build their fitness, resilience, teamwork, and discipline.
All new players are welcome—no experience needed! For more information, please contact us.
Our Squad Ethos
Champion enjoyment and foster a love for rugby in all U14 players, regardless of ability, while continuously enhancing their technical skills and overall performance at every level.
Our Goals for the Season
To play to the best of our abilities, to improve our individual & teamwork skills but most of all, to have fun!
Under 14's Junior Development Pathway
Age Group: Under 14’s
LTAD Stage: Learn to Train
Train/ Match: 70:30
Window of Optimal Trainability (Focus of athletic training)
Develop physical capacities (esp. Aerobic conditioning)
Develop Speed & Rugby SKILLS
Overall Coaching Approach
VERY IMPORTANT – Be sensitive to the physical changes in the players over the coming years (not all the same)
MORE structured games / encourage free thinking.
Player Capacities
(Consolidate and develop previous age skills)
Consolidate & Develop Individual skills / Intro to new skills / cont. Develop tackling (Key element / safety)
Evasion
- HAND OFF (below armpits)
- Swerve and dodge / avoid contact
- Side step off both feet
- Always go forward at space
- Change of pace.
Handling skills
- Decision making – Creating & Preserving space, switch pass, spin pass.
- Lateral Pass – both hands 10+ meters
- Catching (two hands) off the chest
- Capable of passing 10m
- Lineout throw.
Contact Skills
- Fine tune tackling skills (Front, side & behind) looking at body position and timing.
- Falling and placing the ball – long and jack knife presentations
- Introduce 360 presentation.
- Pop up pass from ground.
- Offload out of the tackle. (push ball beyond the defender)
- Getting back to your feet – re-join game – Bounce
- Build overall confidence in contact.
Maul – even split ruck maul work
- Full Maul.
- Ball carrier – Stability & Ball presentation low and in two hands.
- Link Player – Body position (Tower of power), set height equal to a scrum. secure and deliver ball.
- Additional players – join correctly (gate), understand ball transfer
- Defender – join correctly (gate), secure ball & player by wrapping ball carrier’s arms and ball. Leg drive.
Ruck – even split ruck maul work
- Full ruck.
- Ball carrier – leg drive then to ground, secure with good presentation or pass ball.
- Support players – join correctly (gate), scrum body position, secure ball or ruck over.
- Tackler – release, regain feet & contest. join correctly (gate),
Scrum
- Full 8 man scrum.
- All should participate, subject to safety
- All must be confident & competent
- Fully contested
- Scrum half can now pick and go.
- No.8 pickup
Lineout
- Uncontested / no-lifting / Game strategy from Lineout.
Backline attack
- Identify/create and attack space.
- Hold defenders – timing of pass or direction of running.
- Use patterns like switch pass, loop pass and miss pass
- Re-alignment (attack and defence)
- Recognise and be able to realign on turnover or loss of possession
- Develop further 2nd phase of attack, especially from set plays (Scrum, free pass, KOs) have players create a plan.
Kicking & Catching
- Grubber (1v1) / Punt (& regain possession) to gain ground. Attack, Defence & KO strategies.
Laws / Ethics
- Understand the basic rules of 15s
- Personal responsibility for behaviours and actions
The GAME
- Full 15s / Basic tactical awareness / Identify with positional role
- Introduce the idea of pitch zones for game planning
- Develop the idea of territory vs possession.
- Pre-competition, competition & post comp routines
Principles (Team play)
- Go Forward – including basic kicking strategies
- Continuity – maintain possession / Support / Communication (encourage verbal skills)
- Decision making – allow them to explore various scenarios / let them get it wrong / review
- Team Play – collective action in both attack and defence.
- Agility / Speed, Power & Endurance (Intro – Triple extension)
- Co-ordination and manipulation
- Warm-up and cool down
- Flexibility – Special emphasis, due to sudden growth of bones, tendons, ligaments & muscles.
- Enthusiasm & Commitment
- Self control / Concentration
- Goal Setting
- AWARENESS & ACCEPTANCE OF PUBESCENT DEVELOPMENTS
- Commitment to improve / personal responsibility / Interpersonal skills / GOOD HEALTH PRACTICE
Law Variations- Under 14’s
Players per side: 15
Max pitch size: 100 x 70
Minutes per half: 25
Max game time per day: 80
Additional variations: 80
Coaching tips: Referee & coach to rules, especially around new elements (Safety) Be aware of any early developers (growth spurt / PHV), as training may need to be adjusted slightly. Concentrate on Building the engine and rugby Skills (Inc. Team play) CREATIVE Team work. Players play what is in front of them. Create time & Space!