Dan Ritchie

Head Coach Norths RFC, Brisbane I Enjoyment of continual learning

[Bruce Hamburger @CoachBruceHam]

Good read on teaching & coaching.
https://t.co/RgTYVX4F9c via @NYTimes

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@SamLStandsUp This article & 120odd pages into your book is what the rugby world needs more of Sam! The education of why teams kick & the reality v perception (stats) of the volume that teams kick need more air time. Keep up the great work, loving the book!

[Chris Oliver @BBallImmersion]

Decision-making is the hardest skill to develop, yet most coaches wait 20 minutes into practice to train it.

If your warm-up is just laps and lines, you are wasting your team’s most cognitively fresh window.

Here's what we suggest instead https://t.co/okpwgvSFIm

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@CoachLync Mcvay

[CoachLync | Tools & Playbooks @CoachLync]

They said slow down.
He sped up. 🏃💨

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@CoachLync Bama

[Mike Jagacki @Mike_Jagacki]

Mark Daigneault said something that should reshape how every defender thinks about the game:

“The players are too talented and the teams are too good to let them have their way… What does the opponent want the game to look like — and how can we disrupt that?”

That’s not just a quote. It’s a defensive philosophy.

Too many defenders grow up thinking defense is about reacting — sliding laterally, staying in front, and seeing what will happen to them. But at the highest levels, the offense isn’t going to beat itself. If you allow great players to dictate where they go, when they go, and how they go, you’ve already lost the possession.

What Daigneault is really describing is disruptive control. The idea that defense isn’t passive, but active. Rhythm is offense’s greatest weapon, and disruption is defense’s.

The best defenders don’t wait to react to what the offense is doing. They decide what the offense is allowed to do. They determine the terms of engagement. That is one of the biggest mindset shifts for developing defenders.

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@rugby_in_union I find they tend to drop off from club post u15. School programs are better resourced & organised, around s&c and cosching; players are aspirational around wanting to make their 1st xv so it becomes the focus. Physically it’s hard for a 16 yo to play school Sat & club sun.

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@kinson88 @iainpayten @googharrison @StanSportRugby Australian rugby has wealthy supporters queuing up to fund grassroots programs. How do we tap into these same deep pockets to boost Super Rugby, Wallabies development, and elite pathways? Are we missing opportunities to scale grassroots philanthropy to the professional level?

[Coach AJ 🎯 Mental Fitness @coachajkings]

So take the Harbaugh dream test and ask:

"Does my dream feel uncomfortable to admit?"
• If yes → You’re stretching.
• If no → You’re playing it safe.

Have the courage to declare what you want and create a vision for yourself.

Don't settle - DREAM BIG.
(🎥@christianfauria)

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@ChristypDoran He cares, inspires and is invested in our performances. He has brought the level of professionalism up. He’s so popular in our community, he could run for local parliament and win a seat.

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@OlgunUluc Any news on where Adam forde will land next season & who will be the taipans new HC? I really enjoyed what Forde did over the last few seasons, really interested to see where he ends up

[Osku Partonen @Coach_Osku]

9.
When you coach principles:

– Players think, not just react
– Drills repeat with purpose, not boredom
– You stop filling time and start building habits
– Your voice as a coach gets stronger
– The game starts to transfer

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@JPR_25 Regardless of the sport, I feel when you’re this far down the rabbit hole of practice design, you can look at an opponent play and probably guess what their training looks like.

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

@timmosey @StanSportRugby @kinson88 @ChristypDoran The Keith urban cup

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

Which was better? Taqele’s header or Flanagan Smith’s pick up in the wet? Battle of the birds in Caboolture was a cracker!
@StanSportRugby @kinson88 @ChristypDoran

[Joel Cressman @JoelCressman]

Why are small-sided games essential in development?

-Promote player exploration of solutions
-Adjust tactical behaviours on their own and as a team
-Increase coordination against an opponent

An added bonus: they are fun and players love them.

[Dan Ritchie @RitchieDan9]

This is exciting for rugby. The IPL equivalent for 7s

https://t.co/DR0gQrCob3

[Voice of Indian Sport @vo_indiansport]

We are going to have our own Rugby 7s League!

Six teams will participate in the inaugural season of the Rugby Premier League (RPL), a franchise-based league introduced by Rugby India in collaboration with GMR Sports.

#Rugby7s