A quote from Josh Kronfeld....It can be exasperating on the open side , for there are times when you run all day ,get your head up in support of backs , and even though you are yelling your head off telling them you are there , you are rarely given the ball.
But you keep on going, take another breath and .....Run run run tackle tackle tackle link pass take the tackle set it up. Get up have a quick look, decide which way to go.
Make an intelligent , informed guess , decide I have to be there and go for it. If it doesn't happen , too bad , maybe next time. Urge yourself on, drive.
Don't get too ball concious though, too pumped up...or you will find yourself getting offside,leaving your feet in the tackle area, or tackle too early,play it with your hands for too long and a ruck forms over you and you get penalised
1.Talk more!!!!!!
2.Pass information on to the ball carrier to help them in their decision making e.g. on your left behind you , go!
3.Watch their body language once you have given them info to anticipate what they will do next
4.If the ball carrier is in contact..be clear and concise in what you want them to do....ripping, go down , pop pass etc
5. Find out before it all starts where the potential strike point is i.e. split the field into zones going across and communicate which zone the back hopes to bring the ball into.....we use 4 the aussies use 8 !!!6.
If the ball carrier b/c stays on their feet ;link and drive...then rip and feed....so you are free to link again link and spin out and carry on yourself
If b/c is on ground ....lift ball and feed another player.... blast over the ball to take away defenders
Create an obstacle course of situations . At each station the players practise a particular option from above.
To be an effective link player you must practise getting hold of the ball in pressure situations as well as staying on your feet.
Try to incorporate drills that make you think about how best to tackle someone and otimise your chances of taking the ball from them
Sometimes you may have to let them go in to win the ball first and then blast them out of the way and then grab it or take him out and leave the all for your support i.e. dont over extend yourself to get every ball just make sure you end up with the ball for your team.
Find out the call or you will end up coming across the field and end up in the middle of the back move. Also make sure you know the angle that the back is taking coming into the tackle area.
Sometimes you will run hard for the wide moves , go slow for the midfield moves and even pause /stop or walk sometimes for the close in moves....let their flanker tackle your backs and then you have no competition for the ball in the tackle.......
Its not about how you got there but whether you get there and how often and how effective you are...don't worry about the lines of the flanker so much as the effectiveness.
Sometimes you may have to tackle your own player and the oppn tackler to the ground to free up the ball
If you find yourself not in the game as a link person get the backs to set some targets for you
Make sure your backs know that when contact is inevitable look for a forward especially the 7...