Building the perfect rugby player: Full-back
Fresh from looking over the wing position and what makes for the prototype player, our series attempting to build the perfect rugby player wraps up with an examination of the full-back position.
There are a number of crossovers with the wing position and that shows up with how interchangeable the two positions have become for the more adept players in international rugby. That said, there are also a number of unique attributes, with certain things demanded of full-backs that are only seen as desirable in wings.
We have picked out the five most important skills below and attempted to identify a player currently playing who best exemplifies those qualities.
Given the prevalence of the tactical kicking game in rugby now, whether that’s for territory or to contest and win back ball, a full-back needs to be adept in the air. They have to be consistent dealing with those deep kicks, as well as brave and technically proficient enough to own the space and time their jumps in order to give themselves the best chance of success with contested catches.
The skills of Wales’ Liam Williams are considerable and wide-ranging, and he is one of the best players in the air in rugby, regardless of position. He is explosive enough to meet the ball at his highest point, a point usually above his rivals, and brave enough to take the hard landings that frequently come with it. In defence and attack, his ability to win contested catches is excellent.
Once those catches have been won, there is often an opportunity for a full-back to launch a counter-attack. This can be through a swerving solo break or it can be by moving the ball swiftly to an area of the pitch where the chasing team are not ready or equipped to stop the break. This awareness of space on the pitch is vital in all but the most one-dimensional of defensive and territorial full-backs.
In this area, no one has yet surpassed New Zealand’s Damian McKenzie. The former fly-half is electric with the ball in his hand and his ability to pass and offload accurately at pace makes the players around him every bit as offensively potent as he himself is. If the chase has dog legs or lacks cohesion, McKenzie will undoubtedly punish the opposing team.
In order to make the most of that counter-attacking ability, a full-back will need to have plenty of pace. If they can make an initial chaser miss, they could have space to exploit and they will need to do so quickly. In addition to offensive impact, the speed of a full-back in defence is also vital, as they tend to be the last line of defence and may need to cover other players’ errors.
For speed, not many can match Ireland’s Jordan Larmour, with both he and McKenzie largely interchangeable in the pace and counter-attacking categories. Larmour has added scintillating speed to the Irish back three and though there are other areas of his game that he needs to round out, he is rapidly making himself invaluable to Andy Farrell moving forward.
It can’t all be about mazy counter-attacks and open rugby, though, and tactical kicking forms an important part of any full-back’s game. The ability to relieve as much pressure as possible in challenging situations is key, as well as the ability to switch pressure onto the opposing side with a kick that eats up as much territory as possible. With the potential adoption of the 50:22 kicking law, this will be a skill that will only grow in importance at the position.
A relatively new name on the scene, France’s Anthony Bouthier showed during the Guinness Six Nations that he might have the best boot in the business at the position. His spiral kicks were a work of art during the tournament and his kicking game has been a big part of his rise from the lower leagues of French rugby to a starring role with Top 14 powerhouse Montpellier.
Finally, we come to perhaps the least glamorous skill in a full-back’s repertoire, their ability to make one-on-one tackles. As mentioned before, full-backs are often the last line of defence, so when an attacking player makes a break, they are regularly on their own in the battle to stop them before the try line. This requires proficient reading of the game in defence, the savvy to take the right angle to the carrier, and then the power and technique to actually make the tackle.
He fell out of favour just prior to the recent Rugby World Cup, but England’s Mike Brown is still one of the very best in the game at getting to and bringing down an attacking player. Brown was so good in this area, as well as with his ability in the air, that he held off the challenges of arguably more potent attacking full-backs for a number of years and was one of the most consistent 15s in international rugby.
Aerial contest – Liam Williams
Counter-attacking – Damian McKenzie
Speed – Jordan Larmour
Kicking – Anthony Bouthier
Tackling – Mike Brown
Comments on RugbyPass
I bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
19 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
7 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
19 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
9 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
9 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
28 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
19 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
28 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
19 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
90 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
4 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
9 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
19 Go to comments