.....First, it is not so much what you want, it is up to your players. I suggest you set up a players meeting, explain the optimum anxiety - concentration curve and discuss the optimum preparations for your team. Set up a regular routine and stick to it.
If the team thinks a haka will help them, do it. My own team does not go back to the dressing room, and counts to ten but stays on the pitch. We play a 5 minute game just before the actual game that is verycontrolled but very physical. The players come out of it very focused and with a togetherness feeling.
In regard to pre-game rituals and psyche-ups: as a player I was never into the rah-rah cheerleader type of things, so a pre-game chant would not have motivated me. I did here a very motivating pre-game speech from my captain before playing a championship match. The day before we played a double over time semi-final. 120 minutes of rugby is very grueling and we were all exhausted.
Our Captain told us that all athletes no matter what sport they play all have a reserve energy tank, but only championship athletes are able to tap that reserve when the game is on the line in the last two minutes. Because champions come back from adversity, and when they're up they put their opponents away. It is indeed very important to start a match focused and psyched-up; but the true test of an athlete is how they finish.
Whether warming up before practice or a match, I think its important to warm up the brains as well as the body. It seems that most of the teams I've played on through the years have treated this period as a social hour: discussing last night's antics, etc. while lolling about in various relaxed postures.A few things that come to mind:You've got your team together, why not use this opportunity to instruct? Tuesday's stretch might include a post-mortem of the weekend's games: things that went well, things that need to be addressed. The pre game warm up could include a final spelling out of the initial game plan.-
Don't let the same person (the captain) lead the stretches for an entire year. In pre-games he always gets snatched by the ref. In training sessions he becomes available to contribute in the instructions discussed in the point above. Additionally, it gets more people involved in rudimentary leadership positions and contributes to diversity of activities which strengthens the mental preparation.- Before a match do something to stretch the brains of your players. If nothing else, a couple of minutes of four corners with passing left, passing right, dodging traffic, etc. will break down the mental blocks. Dominic
Ben Clegg wrote:On Thu, 4 Nov 1999, Pat Daly wrote:Having coached adult rugby for a couple of decades I, like most coaches, have established a pre-match warm-up routine. Not exactly an answer to your question, but maybe a route to a potential solution. I recently chatted to a friend who had participated in a training session run by Steve Black the Wales fitness advisor .that there were a couple of interesting aspects to Black's warm-up pattern. Apparently he didn't put everyone through affixed stretching routine. Rather he allowed players to perform their own individual stretches, and then carried out a series of drills that warmed up and stretched specific areas in a dynamic fashion[rather than stationary].
For example my friend said they would be asked to move sideways past a series of tackle bags lying on the ground, lifting the same leg over each bag (then with the other leg), with the intensity gradually built up with each run through. I'm told that the drills ended up being very tiring, but that after the initial individual opportunity to stretch there was no switch from this is the warm-up into the rest of the session
I don't believe gender is a factor in the warm-up. We've been working in unison with the men's' sides this season and the only complaint from the women is that the men rush the stretch sometimes. I agree that a jog followed by static stretching isn't ideal, as it tends to bog down and become inefficient. I've had success, particularly on chilly days as Peter pointed out, at moving around a bit, stretching a body part, and moving some more.
It also eliminates the chit-chat.Right now I prefer having our captain lead the warm-up because I'm trying to establish the captain as a central, visible leader. When we've had more field leaders present, it's made sense to move the duty around. But we're never interrupted that early in our warm-up by a ref. I like having a relatively fixed warm-up plan, however. It can lead to a bit of laziness as the drills become tediously familiar, but particularly pre-match, I think the familiarity builds confidence.
It also means that you can push the players to focus on the specifics as the drill itself is already known. I have not had much success in talking to a side during the stretch.
As one of our colleagues pointed out, our players' attention spans can be measured in seconds.
But I have found it useful as a period in which new players can be introduced to the group, and individual assignments can be given (Susan, I want you to work tonight at communicating more at rucks) or requested (Jack, what's the one thing you're going to focus on in this sessio