EXCLUSIVE: Omar Mouneimne on the duel between modern attack and modern defence

EXCLUSIVE: Omar Mouneimne on the duel between modern attack and modern defence
A professional coach of 14 years, Omar Mouneimne is one of the best in the business when it comes to defence.
 
 
He has worked in all the top-flight leagues in World Rugby. Omar has teamed up with Ultimate Rugby to bring exclusive insight to the latest trends in World Rugby ahead of the Rugby World Cup in Japan.
 
 
Today, he takes us through the duel between modern attack (the Light side) and modern defence (the Dark side)
 
 
 
 
 
Modern defence (The Dark side)
 
 
Teams look to have thirteen men on their feet to put pressure on the attacking side with a quick line speed to get in the face of the opposition.
 
 
They aim to get 4 legs vs. 2 (a double tackle), meaning two defenders tackling the one attacker and driving the ball carrier backwards. 
 
 
Here is a prime example of what the defence is looking to do as Courtney Lawes and Lewis Ludlam rush up to hit Aaron Shingler backwards.
 


 
Modern attack (The Light Side)
 
 
How does the attack deal with this? 
 
 
Forwards have now become ballplayers to give the attack more options. 
 
 
 
This means that when the defence wants to rush up on the attack, they have to respect that these forwards can shift the ball on into space. If they don't respect the ball carrier he could play his support or go through a gap the defence has created.
 
 
 
Therefore the defence has to make a split-second decision and have done their homework ahead of the clash. 
 
 
 
If you have a look in the GIF below you will see how Luke Whitelock is used as the first receiver to deceive the French prop and put Damian McKenzie into space.
 
 
 

Saracens did something similar to Leinster with Alex Lozoskwi spotting that Leinster had too many players on the blindside and he signals to Owen Farrell and Maro Itoje to switch the attack.

Itoje plays behind the back of his pod to release Lozowski in the wide channels.

This is a common trend with the Crusaders employing a similar tactic against the Highlanders.


When you look at the GIF below, the Crusaders are attacking slowly and there is really nothing on until Ryan Crotty signals to Matt Todd to step in at first receiver.

They then attack the line at pace with Mo'unga running a late loop.


The final example comes from the Jaguares, who have copied a similar tactic from Saracens.

The Jaguares move the Sharks defence around before Bonilla takes it directly to the line before delivering a 'shoulder ball' to Boffelli, who adjusted his line at the last second to break through the defence and score.

Again, the defence's objective is to read what the attack is trying to do and react quickly and get a double hit in.

As you can see in the GIF, Gloucester don't disguise their intentions well and Ethan Waller and Ted Hill read this perfectly and get a thumping double hit on Gloucester's reserve tighthead.

They drive him backwards and stop Gloucester's attack in its tracks.

Hopefully, this helps you understand the duel between modern attack and modern defence as we build up to what should be the closest Rugby World Cup to date.

And keep an eye out for more exclusive content on all of Ultimate Rugby's channels in the next few weeks and during the Rugby World Cup.



 
 

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