Bone’s beef: Why training footballers’ brains can be a trial by fire
FOOTY clubs have been trying to toughen players’ minds for years. But after living the ‘no limits’ mantra in the Crows’ early days, former Adelaide captain Chris McDermott has a word of warning for the current organisation.
Chris McDermott
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COLLECTIVE Minds. Not sure the name suits.
Much has been said in recent days about the Adelaide Football Club and their use of the company Collective Minds to add an X-Factor to their playing group.
Like anything to do with work above the shoulders, it is best to fully understand what you are subjecting your players to and what they are capable of absorbing.
Then be prepared for it to fail.
The football world is evolving, even maturing, but coaches must take small steps not quantum leaps. The Crows “may” have just taken a quantum leap they were not ready to take.
Let’s state some facts first.
This type of work with playing groups is nothing new, so let’s hold the hysteria.
It was done at Glenelg in the mid to late 80s. It was done at the Crows in the early 90s. It has been done at the Power and it’s being done today and I’m sure it’s been done many times in between.
Some clubs talk about it proudly. Some prefer to keep it quiet.
People talk. And not just players. Coaches talk. Administrators talk. Boards talk. There are always people ready to listen.
The fact the Crows were trialling something is of no surprise. Their “2017 Staredown” was a pretty obvious indication.
It is also pretty clear things don’t always work as hoped and the longer you try something in a public forum the more time you give opposition to prepare a counter attack.
Richmond had time and the rest is history!
Developing minds to be strong, tough and resilient is not easy. Every player is different.
Try it as a “collective” and you are guaranteed mixed results.
The Crows now infamous “fire walk” from the early ’90s is a classic example.
Not enough thought went into it. It was all Plan A and no Plan B. And that’s just not smart, no pun intended!
Years later, we tried again.
The fire was extinguished and replaced by arrows.
Yes, proper arrows that were placed with the point of the arrow in the soft part at the bottom of a player’s neck.
Another player held the other end of the arrow by his chest and they walked slowly towards each other, the arrow bending to the point of snapping.
The pressure on the player’s neck was extreme.
Dangerous and very challenging.
The challenge was to take the next step. To confront your fear and the possibility of injury and snap the arrow.
One by one we did it. It was truly empowering stuff.
Did it have any long-term value? For me personally it did but for everyone, I’m not 100 per cent convinced.
As a group it worked. We won the next weekend from the brink of defeat. At halftime we were at snapping point but we pushed through and beat Hawthorn!
It was arguably Robert Shaw’s finest moment at West Lakes.
There were other things we tried over the years.
Hiking for 25 kilometres carrying blokes on stretchers. Mind games. Physical challenges. 100 x 100m sprints.
Similar but different. All designed to push the mind to breaking point. All designed to toughen the player, improve resilience and leave him in no uncertain mind that as hard as it got, you can always go further.
“No limits” was the mantra at West Lakes for a time.
Unfortunately it had a limit.
New coaches and new players brought new ideas. New beliefs.
There was no buy-in to improve the culture, there was just a desire to re-create a new culture.
If it ain’t broken, why fix it?
The Crows’ Collective Minds project is nothing new. But if the whole team doesn’t believe in it, it will not work. It cannot work.
Collective Minds might work better it’s a collective group.
It may be best to look at each other first before you look for help from outside?
Twenty five years ago, we didn’t.
Don’t make the same mistake, boys.
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History suggests strongly that if you miss out on a premiership at your first try as a coach, you should not get another chance — unless you’re Mick Malthouse or Malcolm Blight, writes Chris McDermott.
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It was the game that stopped a state — the first Showdown between the Crows and Power on April 20, 1997. Chris McDermott shares his memories for Part 1 of The Greatest Showdowns series.