no.8 position

Question
Hi nick, I'm currently moving on into chipstead u17's and have found myself to be aware of most assets necessary to being a good no.8, the only thing that worries me is finding that most of my forward pack seem to be getting to breakdowns way before me, and i find myself constantly dropping out into the backs, is this worth doing or am i just falling into a lazy habit? cheers nick.

Answer
If you are doing a lot of tackles and are in the middle of rucks and mauls then you will get to the next maul or ruck last. That is hard to stop. If a maul or ruck is well won there is no point joining it. Joining the back line or dropping back directly behind the maul/ruck as a potential runner around the side from a pass from the fly half is a solid option.

Make sure to run "loops" to come in behind a maul or ruck. This is legal and puts you in a more effective position to add weight to the maul or to hang back as a runner.

The other players may be running in straight lines from maul to maul and while they might get there first if they are running straight lines they are probably coming from the side and as less effective then when running "loops". That is why just getting there first doesn't mean you are being useful.

Still if you feel you are being lazy then work harder. Study the game and discuss strategy and technique with your coach and other good players. Apply this knowledge then play your skin off. Play hard but play smart too.