Abstract
The domination of the contact zone in both attack and defence has been identified as a national priority in New Zealand rugby. In this article I will focus on attack, but many of the issues discussed here also apply to defence. The domination of the contact zone is achieved by the ball-carrier achieving one of two things: The player beats the defender(s) outright, by using a combination of speed, acceleration and/or evasion; or The player controls the collision by using a combination of explosive running, quick decision-making, targeted running patterns and controlled aggression. Regardless of the techniques used the maintenance of forward momentum by the ball-carrier is critical. While much has been said and written about this area, a certain amount of myth and legend also exists on the skills required for this crucial aspect of the game. The purpose of this article is to demystify this area and give coaches and players some simple rules that they can apply to all their contact training. This information is based on over 15 years of research on the evasion and contact skills of the world's elite rugby players.