Odd couple: John Longmire and Trent Robinson team up in Qatar World Cup fact-finding mission
SYDNEY Swans AFL coach John Longmire and Sydney Roosters NRL premiership mentor Trent Robinson have taken their title as the odd couple of Sydney sport to another level with a fact finding mission to World Cup host nation Qatar.
Roosters
Don't miss out on the headlines from Roosters. Followed categories will be added to My News.
JOHN Longmire and Trent Robinson have taken their title as the odd couple of Sydney sport to another level by travelling to Qatar together to fact find from the big spending World Cup hosts.
While their respective codes the AFL and NRL wage war for the hearts, minds and pockets of Australia’s sporting public the Swans and Roosters coaches are going through the back channels quietly pooling their knowledge and winning.
LIFELINE?: SWANS LOOK TO ADD MENZEL
BUCKY: TOP 30 AFL DRAFT PROSPECTS
The pair first got together five years ago when their respective football clubs shared the same venue in Coffs Harbour for their pre-season training camps. A scheduled two hour chat quickly turned into four as they hit it off. They found plenty in common including an attitude they didn’t know everything about coaching.
They have been pinching ideas off each ever since.
“We just share ideas and thoughts and bounce things off each other,” Longmire said.
“Trent is one of those people I can ring up and catch up with. It’s one of the great things about being in Sydney, it’s the most competitive sporting market in the world but for a coach it’s a goldmine. I learn so much from Trent and coaches from a lot of other sports about tactics, man management skills and everything in between. We’ve all got our own challenges in our sports and to share our knowledge is a great thing.”
Most coaches keep their cards and tactics close to their chests but Robinson has found opening up has its rewards.
“If you are open enough to share information then you will get it back,” Robinson said.
“You can keep it all closed but then you won’t get enough information to develop as a coach. There’s two ways to look at it you can close yourself off and keep your secrets to yourself or you can say that’s where I was but I’m going to keep moving forward from there. You can share it and it will make you go forward further than what you’ve given.”
Longmire has spoken to the Roosters players in the past as well as the NRL coaches association.
In Qatar it was Robinson’s turn to chat with Swans players and staff who were in Doha to learn from the locals who have invested billions into sports science and development.
Sydney stars Josh Kennedy, Luke Parker, Dane Rampe, Callan Mills and Isaac Heeney were full of questions about the Roosters amazing grand final win over the Melbourne Storm.
“AFL players are pretty inquisitive and we talked about shared experiences,” Robinson said.
“I had some Cooper Cronk questions.
“Isaac (Heeney) started out playing League and being a Newcastle boy he was pretty interested but they are all interested in guys like Cooper who is an incredible athlete.
“The players that are here are here to get better and that’s what we’re all trying to do.”
The exchange of ideas between the clubs and coaches has been fruitful to both. The Roosters incredible win over the Storm made it two premierships in five years for Robinson. Longmire has never missed September action in his eight years as Swans coach and has contested three grand finals, winning one (2012).
After spending several days in Qatar, Swans defender Rampe declared: “I wouldn’t have a problem playing in these conditions at all.”
In fact, Rampe reckons the World Cup players will have it pretty good in Qatar compared to the stifling temperatures Australia’s A-League players endure every season.
Rampe is part of the Swans contingent in Doha on a fact finding mission that includes visiting the state of the art Aspire Academy for Sports Excellence, housed inside the largest indoor sports dome in the world.
The Aspire Dome has capacity to host 13 different sporting events simultaneously in a climate controlled arena to allow the country’s elite athletes to beat the heat and train all year round.
Concerns over the dangers associated with extreme heat prompted FIFA to move the 2022 World Cup from its typical June to July time frame to November 21 to December 18 during Qatar’s winter.
Having experienced the weather conditions in Doha at this time of the year, Rampe said he would be very comfortable pulling on the boots.
“This is definitely cooler than Sydney in summer time,” Rampe said.
“It’s been between about 27 and 31 degrees for each of the days we’ve been here.
“If the temperature we’ve experienced on this trip is any indication, summer in Australia is a lot harsher.
“It certainly seems fine to play in this sort of weather, especially in stadiums which have massive cooling systems.”
Only one of the eight stadiums to be used in 2022 (Khalifa International Stadium) has been completed but all will have cooling systems which can reduce the temperature by up to 20C. Fans would need to rug up if they turned the aircon up that high.
Originally published as Odd couple: John Longmire and Trent Robinson team up in Qatar World Cup fact-finding mission
Why Tedesco won’t close door on rep return
The stats show that James Tedesco didn’t deserve to lose his rep jerseys last year, and the Roosters veteran hasn’t given up on winning them back.
Player poll video: NRL stars reveal biggest threat to Panthers dynasty
The NRL’s biggest stars have revealed their biggest threat to the premiership in 2025, while the four Las Vegas-bound representatives selected the teammate most likely to go missing in Sin City. WATCH THE VIDEO.