'Return of the maul a nightmare'
Wed, 01 Jul 2009 11:17
Newcastle Falcons assistant coach Alan Tait believes the return of the maul will once again challenge coaches to reorganise their defensive patterns.
With the International Rugby Board having done away with a number of the proposed Experimental Law Variations following a review in May the maul has returned to the game of Rugby Union and, while most around the world have welcomed it's return, Tait sees it as a real headache for him.
"The return of the maul will be a nightmare to be honest," said Tait to the Journal publication.
"It is very tough to defend and it means we have to do a lot of work to counteract it.
"But it is not as though it is a new challenge we as rugby players and coaches have to face, so we know what we need to do and now is the time for the hard work to be put in place.
"It certainly means we have to change our defensive patterns - every side will - because you saw last season teams would simply fan out a flat line and employ very Rugby League-based systems.
"Of course league has coloured the union defences for some time, but last year was even more the case because you only had two or three real attack methods to cover. But with the return of the maul, now you have to cover that as well as potential pick-and-go drives, runners off nine and 10 and the obvious backs moves or tactical kicking."
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