The secret to Thomas Ramos’ kicking accuracy from the tee has been revealed.
Ramos is notoriously one of the best and most reliable kickers in the world.
The full-back has a strong repertoire of every kicking skill. He has shown his quality from every angle and every distance. This was exemplified in the final game of the Six Nations when France needed to beat England to win the tournament.
The kick came about 50 metres on the angle, and it sailed over with ease and confidence.
The competition that made Ramos near-perfect
Jack Willis on the For Love of Rugby Podcast with Ben Youngs and Dan Cole was asked to talk about some of his Toulouse teammates.
When speaking about Thomas Ramos, the three were in wonder at his kicking accuracy.
The back-rower shared that Ramos loves the big pressure moments and “when there’s more pressure on it, the more he wants to go for it”.
Willis shared the story of how Ramos felt that he has come to be so good. Ramos spent the 2016-17 season on loan at Colomiers, former European finalists, in the Pro D2. Ramos would have competitions with his kicking coach in training. If he hit all of his kicks in a week of training, including the ones under pressure, he wouldn’t have to kick the next week in training.
This focus on perfection and making sure that every kick mattered was a skill in the early part of his career that brought him to be the best.
How does Ramos train now?
Willis was quick to assure everyone that this isn’t the case anymore at Toulouse. He added that he is a model professional.
Professional kickers typically practice their kicking every day as part of their seasons, and the most dedicated will do some kicking before and after sessions.
This will also form a strong part of their matchday preparations.
