First it was Lawrence Dallaglio. Then Mike Catt. Followed by Duncan Fletcher. Now Peter Ridsdale. All with books to sell. And stories to tell. Stories from inside the dressing room. Juicy stories that we usually don’t get to hear unless we were there. All apart from Catt appear to have unresolved issues. Dallaglio – frustrated at being a bit part player in the 2007 World Cup. Fletcher – anxious to distance himself from an under performing England team. Ridsdale – keen to redirect some of blame for Leeds United dramatic fall from grace. Using the medium of a book as […]
Read More...Sports Psychology Blog
Welcome to the Sports Psychology blog. Here you will find insights on current sporting events, from the perspective of a sports psychologist.
The purpose of this blog, is to get inside the sporting drama…why the player or team do what they they do…their thinking…mindsets…attitudes…their fluctuating state of confidence…and all the other mental and emotional pieces that create the psychology of sports.
The most recent articles are at the top of the List Of Sports Psychology Blogs Index.
Football: Tottenham Hotspur – Core Values?
So Martin Jol is sacked. By text? By emergency meeting? Via the fans? No one is quite sure. Suffice to say the manner of his departure is totally unsatisfactory. Dismissing a man who, throughout his tenure, behaved with dignity. This the man who refused to blame the officials after Pedro Mendez long range strike was scooped out of his own net by Man. United’s Roy Carroll. Successful organisations strive to create clear, agreed-to values than run throughout the organisation. Values that are not just fine words on a piece of paper. Values that can be measured. That are measured. Measured […]
Read More...Football: Jimmy Armfield – What He Wasn’t
It’s half-time in the Championship clash between Blackpool and Colchester and Blackpool legend Jimmy Armfield is invited onto the field to make the half-time draw. The interval is nearly over before Jimmy is able to even begin making the draw. The time has been consumed by applause. Wave after wave rolling down the North and West Stands. Applause in honour of the former England captain. 568 appearances for one club. Loyalty and dedication to the core. Fighting illness. And now it’s payback time. Payback from those who were witness to his loyalty. And those who know of it. It’s recognition […]
Read More...Rugby: Johnny Wilkinson – Buddha!
It should come as no surprise that a top sports professional like Johnny Wilkinson should be extending his reading. The worlds of business, art and spirituality carries many philosophies that sports professionals can apply to improve their mentalities. It is easy to see how the principles of Buddah can be effective in a sporting context. Especially the doctrine of learning to be in the moment. Being in the moment means not being subject to the failures of the past, or the possibilities of the future. It is about being fully in the here and now. Senses alive. Senses alert. Senses […]
Read More...Rugby: England – Beyond 36-0
As England prepare to face South Africa in the World Cup final, one of the big questions being asked, is how do England put behind them the 36-0 defeat imposed on them by their opponents, a few weeks ago? Surely it will have shaken them psychologically? Surprisingly, it may turn out that the 36-0 has benefited England more than it has South Africa. 36-0 saw England at rock-bottom. The World Champions faced returning home – embarrassed; ashamed. No ticker tape welcome this time. No Heathrow airport jammed to overflowing. The fear of that shame galvanised the squad into action. Rock […]
Read More...Rugby: England – Supreme Belief
The bookmakers have spoken and South Africa have been installed as 3-1 on favourites for the World Cup Final. Unbeaten in the tournament, 36-0 victors over England in the group game and beating Argentina in the semi’s with plenty to spare. Surely they justify the status of favourites? On paper – yes. But this is the World Cup Final. And England are the holders. And now the holders have discovered a way of playing that suits them. This is a team who will relish the status of underdogs. They may be favourites, but will South Africa be able to match England’s […]
Read More...Rugby: France – Fear Of Failure
It was the chance of a lifetime. Hosts of the Rugby World Cup. A semi-final against a beatable England. Confidence high after beating the All-Blacks. Surely France would break through their stop situation and win the World Cup? Or at least make the final? No – this was a team that could not break free of the shackles. The shackles of fear of failure. A team that went against it’s DNA. The code by which it tries to play the game. The French got sucked into England’s way of playing. Dragged down. As if playing a game of fear. The […]
Read More...Sir Bobby Robson – The Broken Dream
For three years we have witnessed him at St. James’ Park, elbow resting almost jauntily against the dugout roof, history and passion at one with dignity. This is the demeanour of a man, searching for the football moment of pure joy and liberation, when heaven smiles and the gods of football shine down upon St. James Park. But on a sombre Saturday, after an untimely Champions League elimination, the knight’s hair looked whiter, the wrinkles etched more deeply, the Robson sparkle absent. For the hero, bleeding black and white blood, the sight of some of his expensive acquisitions refusing to […]
Read More...Football: Leeds United – A Powerful THEM
It’s ten games into the League One season and Leeds United remain unbeaten. Nine wins and a draw. Three points off the play-offs. This for a team docked fifteen points at the start of the season. Many pundits thought that the fifteen point penalty would send Leeds spiraling into League Two and beyond. A point of no return. But what if the points deduction was a catalyst to success? That the Football League handed Leeds United a powerful focus. A motivational tool that every manager craves for. An enemy to unite his team. A THEM! A THEM is an opposing […]
Read More...Rugby: Argentina – The Band Of Brothers
It was noticeable from the opening game. People were talking about Argentina. Talking about their national anthem. How the players were; the sense of power; the depth of feeling; the togetherness. And so it proved. After defeats of France and Ireland, Argentina are being spoken of as potential World Cup winners. This is a group of players who have clearly built something between them. One observer pronounced that ‘they had God on their side’. In team building status, they appear to have attained the highest level. The level of brothers. It is the point of team development where each player […]
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