Building the perfect rugby player: Fly-half
Hot on the heels of our look at the protoype scrum-half – comes our delve into what constitutes the perfect rugby player at the fly-half position. Regularly heralded as the most important player in a team, the fly-half shoulders the burden of not only getting the back line to click and the scoreboard ticking over, but also ensuring his team are playing the game in the right areas of the pitch.
We have identified the five key skills that any fly-half needs to excel in their role, as well as picking five current players who particularly display those attributes.
As with the scrum-halves, passing is once again a key attribute as a fly-half is required to facilitate most of the attacking play in a back line. They need a good range of passing accuracy and velocities in order to tailor their distribution to any situation, as well as the ability to maintain that accuracy when running at or near to top speed.
There is probably no fly-half as comfortable with the ball in their hand as Scotland’s Finn Russell. The Racing 92 playmaker can manipulate defences with his array of passes and offloads, not to mention the feints and counter-feints he pulls off to move the defence and create the opportunities to hurt the opposition with his distribution.
From passing we move on to kicking, both at goal and from hand. The former speaks for itself, with any fly-half capable of accurately accruing points from the tee adding plenty of value, while the ability to control territory by kicking the corners and finding space with the boot brings its own advantages, albeit less obviously as racking up points.
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This is a point of difference for Wales’ Dan Biggar in his continuing battle with Gareth Anscombe for the 10 jersey. Not only is Biggar accurate kicking at goal, he is also able to chew off large sections of the pitch with his raking touch finders. His shorter kicking game from hand is also very effective, with his chip and chase game as good as any other proponent of it.
Again mirroring the scrum-half position, decision-making is another area in which fly-halves must also be incredibly adept. Making the split-second call on a pass can be difference between an attacking try and a defensive intercept that goes all the way to a team’s own try line. It comes with experience, but also correlates with the confidence that a player has in their ability to execute their own technical and physical skills.
There may be no one better in this regard than New Zealand’s Richie Mo’unga, with the 10 having prospered in this area for the Crusaders and the All Blacks. Mo’unga doesn’t necessarily have the physical or technical point of difference that some of his rivals at the position all over the globe have, making his unerring ability to make the right decision absolutely paramount to the success that he has had.
As rugby players have got bigger and faster, the boundaries of the pitch have not increased to compensate for it. As such, the ability of a fly-half – most teams’ chief playmaker – to diagnose and subsequently execute where the space on the pitch is, can be the difference between victory and defeat. The execution can come in multiple forms but the vision to read the game and see where the space is appearing is key.
No one does this better than New Zealand’s Beauden Barrett. Although shifted to full-back of late to accommodate Mo’unga, the majority of Barrett’s difference-making displays in international rugby and for the Hurricanes in Super Rugby have come at 10. His feel for the flow of a game and awareness of where opportunity and space exist on the pitch is unmatched, and he then has the physical and technical skills to make sure he doesn’t let those opportunities go spurned.
Last but not least, a fly-half needs to be able to defend effectively on the pitch. Occasionally, weaker defensive fly-halves will be moved around on the pitch to hide that area of their game, but they are predominately stationed in a channel that powerful back rowers and centres will frequently run down, meaning they need to be on their toes in defence.
He flirts with legality in his tackles from time to time, but you will struggle to find a more adept and physical defender than England’s Owen Farrell at the position. He is one of the few fly-halves who can stay reasonably high in the tackle and live with the physicality that opposition ball-carriers will attempt to exert on him. As long as he wraps his arms, he’s the standard bearer at the position defensively.
Passing – Finn Russell
Kicking (goal and tactical) – Dan Biggar
Decision-making – Richie Mo’unga
Spatial awareness – Beauden Barrett
Defence – Owen Farrell
Comments on RugbyPass
Except for the injured Zach Gallagher this would be Saders best forward pack for the season. Blackadder needs to stay at 7, for all of Christies tackling he is not dominant and offers very little else. McNicholfullback is maybe a good option, Fihaki not really upto it, there was a reason Burke played there last year. Maybe Havilli to 2nd five McLeod to wing. Need a strong winger on 1 side to compliment Reece
1 Go to commentsTo me TJ is clearly the best 9 in the competition right now but he's also a proven player off the bench, there's few playmaking players who can come off the bench as calm and settled as he is, Beauden can, TJ can and I doubt any of the scrumhalves in contention can, if they want to experiment with new 9s I want him on the bench ready to step in if they crumble under the pressure. The Boks put their best front row on the bench, I'd like to see us take a similar approach, the Hurricanes have been doing similar things with players like Kirifi.
33 Go to commentsROG has better chance to win a WC if he starts training and make himself eligible as a player. He won’t make the Ireland squad but I reckon he may get close with Namibia (needs to improve his Afrikaans) or Portugal. Both sides had 1000:1 odds to win the RWC in 2023 which is an improvement on ROG’s odds of winning a RWC as a coach. Unlike Top 14 teams, national teams can’t go shopping and buy the best players - you work with the available talent pool and turn them into world beaters.
2 Go to commentsthat backline nope that backline is terrible why would you have sevu Reece when he’s not even top 5 wingers in the comp why have Blackadder when there’s better players no Scott barret isn’t an automatic the guy is more of a liability than anything why have him there when you have samipeni who’s far far better
33 Go to commentsAh, good to find you Nick. Agree with everything about Cale. So much to like about his game
49 Go to commentsNot too bad. Questions at 6, lock and HB for me. The ABs will be a lot stronger once Jordan and Roigard return. Also, work needs to be made to secure Frizzell back for next season and maybe also Mo’unga; they’re just wasting time playing in japan
33 Go to commentsOn the title, i wonder for many of those people it is a case something like a belief in working smarter, not harder?
1 Go to commentsForget Sotutu. One of those whose top level is Super Rugby. Id take a punt on Wallace Sititi Finau ahead of Glass body Blackadder.
33 Go to commentsI’m a pensioner so I've been around a bit. My opinion of SBW is he is an elite athlete and a great New Zealander and roll model. He has been to the top and knows what he's talking about. To all the negative comments regarding SBW the typical New Zealand way, cut that tall poppy down.
17 Go to commentsI'm not listening to a guy moralise over others when this is the guy who walked out mid season on Canterbury RLFC when he had a contract with them, what a hypocrite. Those praising him are a joke.
17 Go to commentsI’d put Finau at 6 instead of Blackadder but that’s the only change I’d make. Can’t wait to see who Razor picks.
33 Go to commentsTamati Williams, Codie Taylor, and Same Cane? Not sure about Hoskins Sotutu at test level. Wasn’t that impressive last season. Need a balance between experience and talent/youth.
33 Go to commentsInteresting insight. Fantastic athlete, and a genuine human being.
17 Go to commentsThey played at night in Suva last weekend and it’s an afternoon game forecast for 19 degrees in Canberra this weekend. Heat change is a non issue.
1 Go to commentsWishing Rosie a speedy recovery
1 Go to commentsObscene that SA haven’t been knocking
1 Go to commentsChances of Blackadder being injured seem too high to give him serious consideration. ABs loosie combination finally looked good with 2 committed to tackling and clearing rucks in the centre and Ardie roaming. Hoskins/Ardie together would force one of them into where they don’t excel and don’t get to use their talent, or require a change in tactics. If we continue to evolve last years systems I would take Papali’i and Finau at 6 and 7 (conceding that Blackadder will be injured) and Ardie at 8.
33 Go to commentsArdie’s preferred position 7? Where do they get these writers from? I've no idea where he's playing in Japan, but the previous two seasons he wore the 7 jersey exactly twice.
17 Go to commentsNot good to hear Ulster described as “financially troubled”. Did not think it was getting to that level. I would hope the Irish system of spreading players of talent away from Leinster would kick in now. Better to have a Leinster fringe player with Ulster or Connacht, then getting only a few games a season in Dublin. 10, for example, would seem to be a case for spreading the talent. I would not be at all adverse to a SA man coming in as head coach/DR. Ludeke is worth trying. Certainly got a long and impressive coaching career at this level…..149 games in SR, then Japan, 30 years experience. And Ulster’s ledger of successful SA coaches and players is on the positive side. Is talk of Ruan Pienaar interested in coming back as a coach…..could be a good combination with Ludeke. And Pienaar and family would have no settling in to do, one would judge. He loved life in Ulster when there, by all reports.
1 Go to commentsSome thoughts to consider here, Sam. Thanks
2 Go to comments