Of all the dumb things that get yelled to members of a sports team from the sideline the most excruciatingly brain free is “come on… talk it up!” When did “talk among yourselves” become a thing? This is particularly so in soccer. Oh, soccer coaches have an array of stupid things that they bellow throughout a match (such as “give her an option” or “come on… let’s win those … [Read more...]
OLD MEN CAN’T JUMP – and good principles always apply
Despite coaching basketball for over twenty years Socrates still manages to make the same stupid mistakes he tries to teach his young players to avoid. The old fool turns up for a game of pick-up with a bunch of fellow old coots and manages to make a complete goose of himself by doing precisely what he knows doesn't work! The moral of the story? Even if you are playing with a … [Read more...]
A numbskull’s analysis of Socceroos against South Korea.
Highly regarded “football” pundit, Francis Leach, has given his assessment of the Socceroos performance against South Korea on Saturday night and has come down with the opinion that Australia’s problem is that we don’t have a natural number 9 (central forward/striker) who can optimise opportunities that come from dominating possession by regularly popping the ball into the back … [Read more...]
Can Usain Bolt succeed at soccer?
A couple of days ago the perceptive and articulate (especially in relation to sporting matters), Peter Fitzsimons, threw his hat (or bandanna) into the twitter sphere ring of people commenting on Usain Bolt’s intention to swap his snug running daks for baggy soccer shorts. Fitz was less than enthusiastic about Usain’s prospects and offered a catalogue of sound reasons why the … [Read more...]
What coaches can learn from a brilliant psychotherapist – adapting the views of a counselling professional to the world of sports coaching
What can a famed psychotherapist teach sports coaches? Quite a lot, it seems. I came across an interview with New York based psychotherapist and podcast superstar, Esther Perel, in the terrific magazine Dumbo Feather, the other day. While the whole of her interview about her life and counselling career was fascinating, the thing that most caught my eye most was … [Read more...]