Written by It’s apparent that the coach exerts a major influence on the cohesiveness of the team when looking at the recent history of the New South Wales Waratahs. To their detriment the team has been coach-less for the better part of 2021 so far following the sacking of Rob Penney back in March and the departure of forwards assistant Matt Cockbain. Waratah’s recruitment team are trying to secure new leadership.
Darren Coleman was successful in interview and has been offered the Waratahs’ coaching job but for the small matter of disagreement over the length of contract. Coleman presents as a highly accomplished coach with a well-rounded resume. A Shute Shield-winning coach, he also was successful in turning the troubled Warringah and Gordon around in record time. At present Coleman is in his first year with LA Giltinis in Rugby League in the United States, but he is negotiating a longer contract with the Waratahs before he accepts.
The Waratah’s suffered under Penney, with five straight losses at the start of the season. For his part Penney implored the NSW Rugby board to grant him time to fix the issues within the team but it was not granted. Rumors had circulated that training standards weren’t being met and that the conduct of the players during matches wasn’t suitably reflecting the Waratahs ethos.
There were some on the board that had hoped to lure former Wallabies coach, Michael Cheika to throw his hat in the ring for the job, but he had indicated the unlikelihood while Scott Johnson remained Rugby Australia director of rugby anyway.
Now the team again waits for the politics and negotiations.
The role of coach is so integral to the success or failure of the team. Like the keel of a ship, the coach is there to resist sideways forces, or outside influences, and guide the direction of the team, including the internal culture. There is no doubting that a key reason for employing a sports coach is to improve sporting performance, however, sports coaches have a much greater position description than the achievement of results on a scoreboard. The Australian Sports Commission states that a sports coach needs to also be a mentor, teacher, psychologist, physiologist, and confidante. They also need to bring such skills as diplomacy, negotiation, facilitation, organisation, problem solving and motivation.
In terms of day-to-day coaching, this means that the effecting sports coach must become among other things: an advisor, a role model, a mentor, and a cheerleader. And this is the case regardless of whether it is a kids’ baseball team or a group of elite athletes in training for the Olympic Games. Good coaches are not only employed to improve athletic performance, but to also inspire positive thinking, a good work ethic, teamwork, resilience, and respect and love for the sport in its entirety. Sports coaches play a fundamental part in human development. The sports coach has a unique opportunity to make a difference to someone’s health and fitness, to their longevity and interest in the sport, in their career, and in their lives. The effective sports coach can have a profound influence on their athletes’ lives that can go way beyond the sporting field.