BUILD THE UNIT - SUCCESS WILL FOLLOW
This may seem a logical statement though one that is extremely challenging to achieve. When you bring a group of different people together from all walks of life and ask them to have a common vision and common objectives, there are going to be varied opinions and approaches. Though you never lose sight of the need for the ‘individual’ to be who they are and strive to achieve what they want out of the squad environment, no one person will be able to achieve the success the squad is seeking. It takes all to be responsible for their task and to deliver the job that is needed when it is needed, whether it is the bus driver getting you to the ground on time, the physio being proactive with preventative methods of treatment or the opening batsman who has to score the runs. All must contribute for success to be achieved.
MY PHILOSOPHY / MISSION
To build an environment that continually challenges the individual and relies on personal accountability for progression. Within this environment will be a sense of value, understanding, self-worth and unity that will comfort and inspire people to maximise their potential.
My philosophy or mission statement has appreciation for the individual, who they are and what they require to be the very best they can be. Over the past 2 years I have put an increased value on each individual member of the squad including support staff, of which I am one, developing a more in-depth understanding of each person/player. This will/has helped all parties both on and off the field. This is how the TEAM factor is enhanced and developed. The TEAM is first and foremost though it is made up of individuals and each has to be addressed and handled in a way that they will feel comfortable giving positively to the TEAM environment.
WORKING IN THE ASSOCIATE WORLD
It is important that I mention key elements to working in the associate world as it shapes all that we do and how we do it. It is a challenging world filled with hurdles and opportunities, the key is how you view both. These hurdles come in many different forms:
Limited finance
Limited staffing
Amateur players
Limited player/coach contact time
Facilities that rarely duplicate match conditions
Limited number of quality facilities
Limited quality fixtures
It is easy to make excuses when confronted with such a range of issues that could halt progress, but what does that achieve. There must be realism in all that we do and an appreciation for such issues but the key for me is ATTITUDE, how you actually view these issues and turn them into opportunities. You can make a difference in the associate world and that is what drives me as a coach, hurdles are to be jumped and though you may feel you are forever off the ground believe me when success arrives on your doorstep it is that much sweeter knowing what you have had to go through to achieve it.
THE NETHERLANDS SQUAD
The squad is made up of fully amateur players who either have day jobs or study. From doctors, to fast food outlet managers, to physios there is a true cross section of professions. There are people from different cultures and walks of life, with some coming from abroad and having made Holland their home qualifying to represent their adopted country of residence.
All players use their holidays to play for their country and when these have been used up they take unpaid leave, though the organization does provide small compensation for this. The commitment from these players to play for their country is quite special in my opinion and they must have understanding employers along with very understanding loved ones. Their time management must be good and the ability to prioritise crucial.
As coach of such a squad you must work very closely with each individual and understand on a daily basis what they are dealing with and what commitments they have to juggle. It is never going to be easy for these players to give 100% commitment to the cause, given all they have going on in their daily lives although that is what we ask for and expect. This hopefully enables you to understand why what they achieved in April and June was so special.
LET'S GET CRACKING - PREPARATION PHASE (OCTOBER - FEBRUARY)
Hopefully I have provided an insight into the working environment, the squad, my general philosophy and our key focus that was going to enable us to achieve World Cup Qualification and success at the T20. Now it is time to do the work!
Though ‘Building the Unit’ was my theme, we needed to address some key technical issues as well to enable success to be achieved.
Technical focuses
With the bat:
Improved effectiveness against quality spin bowling
Improved scoring options against back of lengthy 4th stump bowling
Improved reaction speed against quicker bowling
With the ball:
Exceptional control
Exceptional control with delivering variations
In the field:
Throwing technique
% stump hits
Individual’s contribution to run saving/game breaking
Throughout the preparation phase there were other targeted areas both collectively and from an individual perspective but it was important to me to have just a couple that I felt would seriously impact on our performance. It was difficult to accurately measure the progress of some areas, although others we could track very closely and it was clear having viewed the dismissals of many of our batters in the 2008 season that these were key areas.
The repetitive nature of our trainings from October through till December was the catalyst for positive change. I don’t believe we spend enough time targeting a particular skill if we are seeking improvement. We drilled and drilled using a machine off a shortened pitch with softer balls continually increasing the speed and demands. We did throw downs on a regular basis. We bowled channels both with batsman and with targets. The batsman worked rarely in their comfort zone with the exception of when they were actually trying to groove a particular shot. Most of our activities were game simulated and under pressure. I constantly added distractions into the training environment to continually find ways of raising the degree of difficulty of the activity and challenging the batsman further.
It was time to get outdoors, one to revitalize the players as indoor training does get monotonous and secondly there is no substitute for an outdoor environment. So training outdoors was what we now needed to see whether progress had been achieved. Before we travelled to India for our batting camp we embarked on what was to be the most significant factor in our preparation phase and I believe one of the key activities that made the difference.
TEAM BUILDING WEEKEND (30TH JANUARY - 1ST FEBRUARY)
Key objectives
To improve our understanding of our fellow team members and support staff
Develop clear objectives for the tour ahead
Improve clarification of roles within unit
Develop an understanding of what we stand for and how we want to go about things
I believe having done several of these weekends if they are planned well and you have clear objectives they can be very productive exercises. This weekend exceeded all expectation. Through a contact of our captain we were invited to spend a weekend with the Dutch Special Forces. The weekend was compulsory for all the players and they were not informed of the location until they arrived for the weekend.
The real theme for the weekend was coping with the ‘what if’, the uncertainty that presents itself every day and particularly in sport. Throughout the weekend the players were only informed of the next event or activity literally as it was about to take place. They were always out of their comfort zone, although from the moment we arrived and met the soldiers it was clear there were no comfort zones.
In their opening presentation it hit home to us where we were and who we were dealing with. They talked about the importance of dealing with pressure, the importance of understanding your fellow colleagues and the importance of discipline and teamwork. They depended on each other. We all took notice when the commander pointed out:
If we make mistakes we die or our colleague dies, you may make mistakes you lose your wicket. It just didn't seem the same. Point was if we approached our cricket with the discipline and commitment these guys demonstrated how good could we become?
We were issued with our army kit and as it was -5, the warm clothing we were given was going to come in handy. Then came the barracks we were staying in, simplistic to say the least. There were a few comments/moans but little did they/me know that the barracks were only to store our gear, we were actually building our shelter outside in the forest, I call it bush where I come from. Well the mood changed. Though initially one of uncertainty and possible concern as there were penguins running around on the ice, it quickly changed to urgency and excitement as we were given our first challenge.
You have an hour before the sun goes down, you have to find whatever you can to build a shelter and get organized for a cold night ahead. We went to work in our groups of 4/5 and what I witnessed was truly remarkable. I saw guys who I didn’t think would enjoy such an activity taking the lead and getting it done. Teamwork came to the fore and once we had the fire going we were set. The lettuce, pork chop, butter and salt was issued for our dinner and we nominated our cooks whilst the remainder continued to look for timber for the fire.
It was made clear to us we could not at any stage let the fire go out so this was priority one and we were only allowed to sleep an hour on an hour off. Unfortunately our group made a serious mistake early on by rounding up wet timber. Our fire created serious smoke that saw the Indians coming over the hill so sleeping in our camp was not really an option as smoke inhalation would have killed you. Hopefully I have painted a picture of our evening as the morning snapshot of the guys was not pretty.
6 AM sharp we were greeted by the soldiers, given a very short time frame to tidy up and then we were taken on a run in full kit. It was so cold so full kit was welcomed. Breakfast was taken with a timeframe given and it was not an option to be late. It certainly cost us dearly and this only happened once. We learnt our lesson quickly. From this point we were taken through a range of activities over the course of the next 6 hours and given the limited amount of sleep we had the night before, what was to come was challenging to say the least.
They challenged the strength of mind and character and gave little compromise along the way. What was so impressive is that after each activity the commandos gave a detailed debrief. Given they had no/limited knowledge of cricket until very recently, they had clearly done their homework and provided feedback that related to our sport. They were taking this seriously and showed incredible professionalism. Their debriefs mainly referred to:
The ability to perform under pressure
Understanding how you react under pressure
The ability to identify when your colleague is under pressure
The importance of teamwork
The importance of belief
Having completed all tasks, exhausted and extremely tired we were then taken into the hanger for a series of presentations delivered by each group. Now having experienced the day and knowing how I felt I thought these presentations would be average at best. My biggest regret from the weekend came at this point. Not videotaping these presentations by the players. They were so powerful, both in delivery and information and I was amazed given their physical state. Having witnessed this I then queried the players on why they delivered such powerful presentations and their response was, ‘it is the uniform’, you still feel strong and sharp and this gave me the ultimate understanding of another overriding message from the commandos.
Body Language, have a presence, put the chest out and walk tall.
I have never witnessed such pride until I attended this weekend. These guys were so proud of their uniform and country that they fought for. What a lesson this was. The orange lion on the chest had just growth 10 fold!
This actually played a part in further decisions we made in the way we presented ourselves. We built a relationship with a clothing company who provided us with a formal suit and full travelling outfit and then approached a shoe company for their support. The end result was all players and support staff were fully outfitted in what we deemed as our No 1’s and No 2’s and whenever we arrived at hotels and venues we had the option of how we would present ourselves. We arrived at Lord’s in our Number 1’s and I think it made a difference. The group had a presence and they felt it.
These are the presentations topics given by the players after the day of activities:
SELF CONFIDENCE
COLLABORATION / TEAM WORK
STRESS
RESPONSIBILITY & SAFETY
This was a truly remarkable weekend and life experience. It exceeded all expectation and I have no doubt proved to be one of the deciding factors in our success. How I top this for the coming season is one of my new challenges, though I will not change the key values that we took from this weekend and that are now very much a part of our environment.
DAVID ALRED PRESENTATION (8TH FEBRUARY)
The area of psychology is one that is interpreted by many in varied ways. Some believe in it, some will sit and listen and some think it is simply not relevant. Having witnessed games being lost through very poor decision making and what appears to be senseless actions, when you listen to people qualified in how people think and act under unusual conditions, particularly pressure they seem to make sense of it all.
I have been exposed to Dave several times through various ICC meetings and the ECB Level VI course and I thought the way he approached dealing with pressure and how he related it to the sporting field was very impressive and powerful. So I was keen to involve Dave in our preparation. He provided information prior to our Team Building Weekend with the Special Forces and then reviewed this weekend along with delivering a 3 hour workshop in Holland. All players were provided with diaries and I have no doubt Dave played his part in our success.
INDIA BATTING CAMP (22ND FEBRUARY - 1ST MARCH)
This was our first opportunity to get outdoors and be put under the pressures of the sub-continent conditions and quality bowlers. We took 7 batters to the Global Cricket Academy in Bangalore, run by Sachin Bajaj. This was a very well organized camp and was perfect for our needs. The batters batted long against quality bowlers on turning wickets which continually presented challenges. Within our 7 batters were 2 spinners who benefited enormously from the opportunity to bowl in sub-continent conditions with excellent guidance and support.
Each batter had the use of video feedback along with a variety of coaches to support their development. We debriefed each evening, reviewing the day and planning the next day creating different scenarios. The beauty of this week was that although there was a heavy skill development component, we were able to structure in game scenarios that provided different challenges. Again another key element that I believe contributed to our success.
IMPORTANCE OF THE RIGHT SUPPORT CREW
We are now ready to head to Cape Town for the 2 week period leading up to the Qualifiers. This is where we target on field activities and set up the team. The selection of support crew was crucial as these people would be working closely with the team for the next 5 weeks, the longest tour this team has ever been on.
The Cape Town leg consisted of:
Coaching staff: Coach / Assistant Coach
Medical Team: Physio / Trainer
Management Staff: Manager
The tournament phase:
Coaching staff: Coach / Assistant Coach
Medical Team: Physio / Masseur
Management Staff: Manager / Assistant Manager – media liaison-social convener
Technical staff: Analyst
It is important for me as head coach to surround the players with the right people. These people not only have to deliver the job required but equally have to have the right attitude. They need to be positive, enthusiastic people who are committed to the well-being of team and the environment created.
THE RIGHT ENVIRONMENT
Having completed the Team Building Weekend, setting out our goals and objectives along with our team values was easy. I’m not going to go through all the components that all coaches know make up the desired environment, what I am proud to say is the players have taken the statements we agree were important and made them reality. Our environment has become one of the most cherished commodities and to use one of our senior player’s words, ‘it is something he is very proud of and wants to protect.’ In his 13 years playing for his country he has never felt so proud of the lion on the chest and that is powerful to hear as a coach.
Our environment is:
One that shows immense support for each other
One that shows respect and understanding
One that believes in each other and themselves as individuals
One that celebrates each other’s success
One that allows us to reflect and review openly and honestly with no fear of recrimination
One that challenges the individual to be the very best they can be
One that makes constructive decisions off the back of the identification of a mistake or poor performance
One that remains positive through the tough times and shows the character of champions when on the mat - fight
One that enjoys the experience and opportunity that has been provided
CAPE TOWN LEG (14TH - 27TH MARCH)
The 2 weeks we were in Cape Town we experienced excellent weather, training facilities and opposition which was exactly what we required at this stage of our preparation. Our build up continued with the trainer now starting to implement new preparation and recovery routines. So as much as we were setting the team up tactically and exploring all our options, the trainer was implementing new dietary measures looking at the time we ate, what we ate and how we recovered.
He had us out of bed at 5.30am dressed ready to go all sitting down eating breakfast together preparing us for tournament time where we were on the bus at 6.15am setting off to the ground. Arriving at the ground after an hour and half bus journey. He arranged evening meals where he educated the players on what food intake was good for recovery and equally importantly when to consume it. He insisted on eating together at breakfast and each night prior to a match. He organized private eating areas where the squad could spend further time together. He found the right balance between bringing the team together and allowing them their own time.
He provided all players with recovery products and monitored them closely throughout. These 2 weeks was his time to educate the players on this crucial area as he was not going to be with us during the tournament.
In fact, he impacted so significantly that the players offered to fly him back. He is more than just a trainer and dietary expert, he is such a positive guy he changes attitude and I don’t say that lightly. Unfortunately as with others in our Cape Town support crew, they had other jobs to return to and could not be away for 5 weeks.
COMPETITION
I have deliberately left competition to last as I suppose that is where it fits but the point of this article was to look closely at our preparation period and all that was involved. The Netherlands as with any side in lengthy tournaments had fantastic moments and matches as they did lesser times. Overall though they competed consistently at a high standard, had the player of the tournament in their ranks, a fast bowler who performed amazingly well on batter friendly conditions, 3 of the top 4 run scorers were from our side and our keeper had the highest dismissals. We also finished the lengthy tournament all still fit which was a credit to the lads who put in an enormous amount of work prior and a real credit to our trainer who got them in this shape.
The Netherlands finished third in the tournament and qualified for the 2011 World Cup.
We then moved onto the World T20 in London. Although the pressures were different, we felt that given we were off the back of a successful campaign full of confidence, we were fit and at full strength we could cause an upset. We knew that to be successful we had to back our style of play:
No fear with a real desire to express ourselves and show off our skills and capabilities.
We prepared well through excellent support from several full members and the ICC and we were ready to relish the opportunity of playing in front of a full crowd at the home of cricket against England. Well we created history that night and though many would say this should not happen, I saw what went on behind the scenes for 8 months prior and I knew something special could happen, and it did!
The Netherlands beat England by 4 wickets.
CONCLUSION
Key factors that contributed to our success.
Organisation providing suitable funding allowing for me to put together a solid preparation programme
Identification of key technical areas to be improved
Impact of Team Building weekend
‘Buy in’ from players when new preparation methods were introduced by the trainer
The significant efforts of the support crew
The environment that was created
Total commitment from the players to the cause