Hey tmen and twomen…back after a bit of a sabbatical. Just wondering if you guys had any tips for an upper-body field test. I’ll be testing rugby players and will have limited materials (med balls etc.). I was leaning towards either a seated throw using a med ball, or a kneeling backwards overhead throw. I figured that the seated throw (essentially like a ballistic incline bench) would be more applicable due to the fact that most physical confrontations in rugby occur in front and laterally as opposed to the rear of players. The test is not intended to “weed out” less powerful players, but to serve as an indicator of the starting point of players before beginning serious training and to use as a database for future comparisons. Other tests that I’ll run will be: a 35m (approx. 40yd) dash, 3rm Bench, vertical jump, 20m. “beep test” and perhaps an agility course type drill. Thanks for your input.
Put together a series of tests that will also teach the players what is important. I would suggest the following (i) flexibility, seated legs spread wide, bend forward bringing nose to ground, measure distance nose to ground ii) broad jump (iii) vertical jump (iv) 20 agility shuttle (v)L drill (vi)60 yard shuttle (vii) 40 yard dash (viii) 20 yard dash (ix) seated med ball toss (x) med ball scoop throw forward. It is my standard testing day. Times can be done off reactionary and will give you a better guage of game speed. I would also suggest some an obstacle coarse but we can talk about that later. In faith, Coach Davies
Could someone explain how to do the agility
shuttle, L drill and 60 yd shuttle?
Thanks dp
ouch, coach d. why do you have them doing passive stretching, might i ask.
You are quite right with your comment but remember I noted setting up tests that implicitly teaches the athletes the importance of a well-rounded program. This is a simple manner to test a large group of athletes and help compare their flexibility. By including such a test we are not only just understanding physical characteristics but we are also stating that range of motion is evaluated as well. Does that make a little more sense?
it does and it doesn’t. As far as flexibility is concerned, passive flexibility, to my knowledge has no correlation w/ active stretching and no relation to rugby.
thanks for your input, Coach…I don’t think everyone here really appreciates the amount of time you put into this forum…really very outstanding. With limited time, I’ll have to focus on a few (no more than 6) tests to try and cover all my bases. The obstacle course idea is very intriguing as it could potentially test for a number of different athletic qualities and skills depending on the components that are included. I’d love to hear your suggestions on such a course. Vital components for rugby would be: an agility/change of direction section, a tackle simulation (with a tackle bag), another type of physical confrontation section (for example dragging a weight…) and perhaps finish with a skill - target section in which the player must execute a pass towards a target. To keep it applicable to an actual match, I think the test should last 20-30 seconds. Any suggestions are appreciated!!!Thanks