Hit the Opposition with Lomu
A Lomu inspired move from my 50 Great Back Moves manual.
There was a certain irony about the scene in Cardiff Rugby Club players' bar when a fan, desperate to be photographed with the great Jonah Lomu, shoved a camera into the hands of a bystander and asked him to do the honours.
Lomu is a gentle and respectful man. The grin in the snap was sheepish and Jonah's apology to the hapless bystander afterwards was gracious. For the man doing the fan a favour was Gareth Edwards, the legendary Welsh scrum half, who in turn thanked Jonah for his sensitivity and laughed at the irony.
Lomu has inspired lots of moves, mainly involving wingers. This one, taken from my best selling 50 Great Back Moves manual, is great for scoring tries and is one of my favourites... partly because I also scored many tries from it!
BW = Blindside winger
Level of difficulty: hard
Who does what?
- 10 runs forwards, dummy switches with 12, and then passes inside to BW.
- 12 runs on a dummy switch with 10.
- BW waits until the dummy switch has been performed, then takes the inside pass from 10 to attack for the line.
Tip: BW gets into position early but walks the first few paces to help with the timing of the move.
Common mistakes
- 12 runs too early, resulting in the dummy not being effective (it doesn't take out a defender).
- BW is too far away from 10. Because 10 is unsighted in this move he can find it a difficult pass.
- 10 needs to take the ball up to the tackle line so the defence is surprised by the arrival of BW.
Tactics
Best from:
- The opposition half and just outside their 22.
- Because this is a risky move, which can can lead to a loss of ground if not hidden very well, it should not be considered for a strike move close to the opposition line.
Good if you have:
- BW is a strong runner, with the ability to break tackles.
- You have already used a switch involving 12.
- The opposition 10 is a weak tackler.
Think about:
- A risky option is for 10 to flick the pass out of the back of the hand.
- 10 getting as wide as possible before receiving the pass.
- BW running a line that takes him away from the scrum.
Click here to see other backs moves in action.
My 50 Great Backs Moves manual shows you how to coach and replicate "Lomu" and 49 other moves, to bamboozle defences and score more tries. Click here to read more about the manual and to order it.