Backs to the Wall is Best?

An extremely disappointing Bok test match started my weekend off with a whimper and left me pondering just what went wrong? Fatigue, jet-lag, lack of preparation time etc all crossed through my mind. The very first thing most people point to when looking for reasons for defeat is lack of motivation or a poor coach. Now I do not subscribe to those as a first resort as I often think there are far more pertinent reasons for defeat in many cases. What interested me, however is that in at least 4 player interviews in the aftermath of the game, the players cited that they had not turned up mentally for the game. None more so than John Smit, who looked and sounded disgusted with Saturday’s loss. This led me to think, what could have been these mental issues on Saturday.

During the week I worked with a top local school’s rugby sides, in what I thought were some excellent sessions, in getting them to think a little about what they had to do in the weeks ahead to achieve their success, by thinking about what they had done in the past to find success. Something that sprung to me is that often when teams are the underdog, or feel they have a point to prove, they possess the greater motivation and perhaps give more. This underdog status is one that is sought by many teams as it takes pressure to perform off, as there is always an excuse that the better side won should they lose, and it creates a strong external motivator of “let’s show others how good we can be”. This is not a bad thing at all and coaches can use this as something to really fire up his troops. With the pressure off and the goal of showing people to be wrong, teams can develop a strong bond and will to succeed.

However, what happens when you are not the underdog, or have little to prove, but rather just the prize of remaining favourites and the ‘top’ side status to gain? Suddenly the pressure mounts as you are now EXPECTED to do well rather than have people hope that you do well. You have also proved all that you needed to prove, and now instead of having to prove to others (external motivation), you rely on proving to yourselves how good you are (an internal motivator) or chasing an even greater success as your primary motivation. This can sometimes be quite tough for teams, as the challenge is not as easily evident, and perhaps it doesn’t sit as easily with them due to their cultural upbringing. I believe if trained properly this can become an even stronger and deep-seated motivator. In the book, the Art of Possibilty, author Ben Zander believes very much in ‘giving people an A’ first and facilitating the path from good to even better, rather than creating undue pressure by working off a zero-base of achievement. Doing this for teams and players could be so valuable.

I believe the key here is to get teams and individuals to truly find out what motivates them, and to acknowledge that both internal and external motivation comes into play in different situations for different teams and individuals. People need to be aware of how they are motivated, as do teams. I would not want to make a definite statement as to why the Boks lost on Saturday, but I truly believe that we as a country sometimes get trapped into thriving on the underdog status, and will to retreat into our laager and “let’s ‘show them” mentality as a first port of call. This leaves the favourites and ‘little to prove’ perch as foreign, scary and not nearly as exciting. I’d be interested to hear any thoughts?

All the best to all schools and club coaches and players with the 2nd half of the season, long may the game where feigning injury and screaming at referees is frowned upon, continue!!