What characteristics do you need to have to become a good rugby player?

Question

i am 5'10 155 Ibs

Answer 1

You have to be both mentally and physically fit and also have some size about you. if your a back you need speed, acceleration, good passing and kicking game, upper body strength, footwork, stamina, good hands, powerful legdrive.

forwards will need the same characteristics although the kicking and passing game is not very essential and obviously have more bulk and power.

Answer 2

Mentally, you need to have that "get back up and keep playing" attitude.  what they give you, you give back... harder.   but keep your team in mind to. In rugby, you must function as a unit. The goal is possesion and position. In football, they measure how far you got the ball.  In rugby, you can get that ball 30m down the field, but if your team isnt supporting you, that ball will come right back, probably in the hands of a huge prop.

Physically- The game has changed a lot from the past. ie.. before wings were tiny, weak and super fast. Now, a lot of wings are still fast, but they are quite strong as well.

It is safe to say that you should go for all around fitness, with emphasis on strength and endurance, until you have a specific position.  At that point you can fine tune your body. Any skills can be aquired then too.

Good luck!

*Edit *- Just remembered. You didn't specify your height or weight.  But if you are small, no fear!  I am 5'6" 126 lbs. Ive been playin for 8 years and im still alive haha. The trick (ive found) is that you must focus more on technical skills... dummy pass (fake pass), the passing itself, the proper hand off (stiff arm), jumping for the ball, quick feet, and most importantly, GETTING LOW during tackles/running into tackles. 126 lbs doenst seem like much, but if its a 126 lb curled up ball commin fast, the hit is quite surprising.