How to Spin a Rugby Ball
Use long, accurate spirals for big passes., Place your right hand on the back of the ball., Place your left hand underneath the ball at the other end., Pull the ball back to your right hip., Turn your upper body to face the target., Toss your arms...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Use long
A clean spiral is essential, especially for the scrum and fly-halves.
A spiral is the classic, across the body throw, where a player uses their arms and a quick snap of the wrist to quickly launch the ball as far as possible.
Accuracy is always more important than spin.
You should focus on hitting your target before getting the spin right.
If you're doubtful about your ability to pull off a long throw, take the ball into a tackle.
You'll maintain possession of the ball, which is far more valuable than risking a difficult pass. -
Step 2: accurate spirals for big passes.
The ball is horizontal in front of you, and your right hand is near the end of the ball.
The arc between your thumb and first finger should point at your desired target.
The most common pass is a standard throw with your right hand, across the body to your left, and behind you.
Remember, a rugby pass can never be thrown forward, so don't practice throwing ahead of you.
Place your right hand on the top of the ball, then slide it towards the point until just the edge of your palm is touching the end of the ball.
If you have big hands, move them slightly towards the front of the ball, fingers curled around the sides.
You should be able to hold onto the ball with just your right hand, so adjust your hands until this is possible., The left hand is a guiding hand, meaning it doesn't have to grip tightly.
Simply place it underneath the ball, palm up, so that your thumb is near the left-most point (nose) of the ball. , While you use your right arm for most of the power on a right-handed throw, you want to get your body as involved as possible for maximum strength.
Pull the ball back to your hip, leaving it roughly horizontal as you do.
Try and keep the ball pointing the right way as you bring it down
-- you don't want to try rotating it into the right alignment as you throw it. , With the ball still down at your hips, rotate your shoulders to your teammate.
The better your shoulders are squared up to them, the more accurate your throw will be.
It is often best to practice in a horizontal line.
This allows you to focus on throwing sideways, turning your shoulders for each throw while your feet face forward., Keep the ball at roughly the same level, roughly hip/belly height, throughout the throwing motion.
Your right arm will give most of the power, so focus on pushing from the right on a right-handed throw.
Use your left hand to guide the throw to its target.
Your inside arm will stay relatively in place, elbow slightly bent.
Your outside arm should curve a bit outside, with the elbow pointing out., As you finish the throw, slide your right hand down and towards your chest, "pulling" the skin of the ball down and into a spin.
This is the hardest part of the motion, but is easy to learn with some practice.
As you get better you can also snap your left thumb down to put even more spin on the ball., Keep your hands moving until both arms are fully extended.
They should point at your target.
In general, your left palm will face up from guiding the ball and your right palm will face down from the wrist snap. -
Step 3: Place your right hand on the back of the ball.
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Step 4: Place your left hand underneath the ball at the other end.
-
Step 5: Pull the ball back to your right hip.
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Step 6: Turn your upper body to face the target.
-
Step 7: Toss your arms at the target
-
Step 8: keeping the ball low and horizontal.
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Step 9: Pull the fingers on your right hand back towards your body.
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Step 10: Follow through with both arms extended at your target.
Detailed Guide
A clean spiral is essential, especially for the scrum and fly-halves.
A spiral is the classic, across the body throw, where a player uses their arms and a quick snap of the wrist to quickly launch the ball as far as possible.
Accuracy is always more important than spin.
You should focus on hitting your target before getting the spin right.
If you're doubtful about your ability to pull off a long throw, take the ball into a tackle.
You'll maintain possession of the ball, which is far more valuable than risking a difficult pass.
The ball is horizontal in front of you, and your right hand is near the end of the ball.
The arc between your thumb and first finger should point at your desired target.
The most common pass is a standard throw with your right hand, across the body to your left, and behind you.
Remember, a rugby pass can never be thrown forward, so don't practice throwing ahead of you.
Place your right hand on the top of the ball, then slide it towards the point until just the edge of your palm is touching the end of the ball.
If you have big hands, move them slightly towards the front of the ball, fingers curled around the sides.
You should be able to hold onto the ball with just your right hand, so adjust your hands until this is possible., The left hand is a guiding hand, meaning it doesn't have to grip tightly.
Simply place it underneath the ball, palm up, so that your thumb is near the left-most point (nose) of the ball. , While you use your right arm for most of the power on a right-handed throw, you want to get your body as involved as possible for maximum strength.
Pull the ball back to your hip, leaving it roughly horizontal as you do.
Try and keep the ball pointing the right way as you bring it down
-- you don't want to try rotating it into the right alignment as you throw it. , With the ball still down at your hips, rotate your shoulders to your teammate.
The better your shoulders are squared up to them, the more accurate your throw will be.
It is often best to practice in a horizontal line.
This allows you to focus on throwing sideways, turning your shoulders for each throw while your feet face forward., Keep the ball at roughly the same level, roughly hip/belly height, throughout the throwing motion.
Your right arm will give most of the power, so focus on pushing from the right on a right-handed throw.
Use your left hand to guide the throw to its target.
Your inside arm will stay relatively in place, elbow slightly bent.
Your outside arm should curve a bit outside, with the elbow pointing out., As you finish the throw, slide your right hand down and towards your chest, "pulling" the skin of the ball down and into a spin.
This is the hardest part of the motion, but is easy to learn with some practice.
As you get better you can also snap your left thumb down to put even more spin on the ball., Keep your hands moving until both arms are fully extended.
They should point at your target.
In general, your left palm will face up from guiding the ball and your right palm will face down from the wrist snap.
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Stephen Hernandez
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