Introduction

�@Think about the great players in any team sport whether it is rugby, soccer or basketball. What is it that most distinguishes such marvellous players as David Campese in rugby, Diego Maradonna in soccer or Michael Jordan in basketball? Yes, they possess excellent skills and particular physical attributes but so do many other players. What seems to most distinguish these players from others is something less tangible. They always seem to be in the right place at the right time, they always seem to have more time and invariably make the right decisions seemingly without time to think. Great players in rugby and other team sports display an uncanny and embodied understanding of the game. Despite the heavy contact involved in rugby and the obvious need for physical power and strength, success in rugby requires a well-developed understanding, powers of perception, anticipation and decision-making ability. Rugby is a very tactically complex game in which players must constantly deal with a changing environment and make appropriate decisions based, not only on an immediate individual basis, but also an understanding of how the player's actions can best contribute to the team's game plan. �@'Game Sense' is a way of coaching developed in Australia over the past decade that offers rugby coaches a means of developing thinking, creative players with flexible skills and the understanding needed for good decision-making. This paper begins by outlining the ways in which the Game Sense way of coaching can help develop thinking players with a better understanding of the game. It then draws on interviews conducted with coaches from a range of sports who are using a Game Sense approach to coaching in Australia to identify and discuss what they see as its strengths as a way of coaching. Finally I provide a few practical examples of Game Sense activities for coaching rugby union to illustrate how Game Sense can be applied.