Tough Teams Framework - A 'Competence' sub-principle

 In 2015, the Lions senior rugby team won the Currie Cup trophy (South Africa’s premier interprovincial tournament and oldest of its kind in the world) and then went on to compete in the 2016, 2017 and 2018 Super Rugby finals (I was fortunate enough to be part of the 2018 coaching staff). This group was exceptionally well led by then head coach Johann Ackermann and his assistant coaches, captain Warren Whiteley and his leadership group and fellow decision makers (which likely included lineout caller and 2019 World Cup winner, Franco Mostert, and fellow World Cup winners Faf de Klerk and Elton Jantjies). The players in that team all speak fondly of Ackermann as a coach - they related to him as a father-figure in whose team environment they felt both accountable and safe enough to freely express their God-given abilities in high pressure situations.

 From the Lions junior system looking in, that group seemed united around a common cause - they appeared to relish in each other’s company and success. They also resembled a group moulded and hardened by the serious adversity that the union had to endure in 2012/13. This season saw the team unceremoniously booted out of Super Rugby and they were forced to claw their way back into the tournament by winning a tightly contested home and away promotion-relegation battle against the spirited, and highly motivated EP (Eastern Province) Kings outfit. Had they failed; the future of the entire union would have been in serious jeopardy. But they did triumph - they came out on top, they toughed it out.

 As head coach of the 2016 and 2017 Lions u19, Currie Cup winning teams (along fellow coaches Neil de bruin and Philip Lemmer, management members, MJ Rabodiba, Bart Schoeman, Stephan van Deventer, Dr. Anri Collins, Pam Maurel, Henet Branders and Bestell Mondo) I sought to emulate the habits and values embodied and personified by the Lions’ senior group. Moreover, we endeavoured to take on and cloth ourselves in what we thought to be the senior team’s greatest attribute - their toughness. Not resilience, not fortitude or any other fancy term but rather good old-fashioned toughness.

 We therefore embarked on a plan to formulate and then build the toughest possible Lions u19 teams. We didn’t have the best resources or flashy facilities, nor even budget to speak of. Unlike our fully professional rivals, we were often forced to train 6am in the morning and 6pm in the evenings to accommodate our student athletes. We also didn’t necessarily have the best players (reputation wise), although it must be said that in 2017, we were fortunate to coach numerous South African schools stars now playing senior professional rugby - the likes of Manny Rass, Wandisile Simelane, Gianni Lombard and Tyrone Green amongst others. It makes a massive difference having world class players at u19 level; they can win games purely on their own natural ability if the situation calls for it. It wasn’t a surprise when this team overcame a good Bulls team at Ellis Park (now Emirates Airline Park) in the semi-final and when Western Province lost to Free State in their semi-final; the tournament was all but won given the ridiculous amount of talent within that group and the good character that the staff had instilled in them throughout that year. The team went on to comfortably win the final against the Free State at the Shark Tank.

 In 2016 however, we won only one of our opening four matches – not what we had hoped for in a 12-game tournament (excluding semi-finals and finals). Naturally some doubt crept into our camp, but we resisted the temptation to blame shift and look for excuses. Instead, we forced ourselves to look internally; towards what we could each do better in order to achieve our vision and goal - to utilise an attractive and character filled brand of rugby to win the u19 Currie Cup for the first time since 2011 and values (unity, ownership and work ethic and the endeavour to be known as a humble, hardworking and happy group). We also reminded the group that life was not easy or fair, to look just beyond the fence bordering our training ground at Johannesburg Stadium to see the daily adversity that people were going through, fighting every day for their livelihoods. And we thus took confidence in that fact that none of their opponents were being exposed to this level of adversity. We challenged the team to view and frame adversity as a privilege - a friend and not a foe. The type of friend who builds the character needed to overcome whatever stood in the way of achieving our goals and our purpose. This allowed us to find a unity, to take ownership, to build a work ethic, to remain humble and happy and to ultimately see us through that challenging period. The result is that we turned things around - we never lost another match and went on an incredible winning streak that culminated in an impressive victory (60-19) over Western Province in the final at the Free State Stadium.

 It was overcoming the adversity above that made this team tough - tough enough to challenge themselves and conquer situations where other teams would implode. The opportunity to show this toughness presented itself in the semi-final match at Loftus Versfeld against the Bulls. One of our lock forwards received a red card in the 22nd minute of the first half – there couldn’t have been a greater challenge than facing the Bulls at home with a man short with three-quarters of the game remaining. This was true adversity, a massive test of character. But our young team responded in an incredible manner - they remained united, outworked the opposition, dealt exceptionally well with the pressure moments, handled the momentum swings with good maturity, and remained focused on playing attractive and character-filled rugby. We went on to win the match 34-24. It was a memorable and rewarding performance considering that three schoolboys and five non contracted (University players) formed part of the match 23 on that spectacular day. These young men made it happen; in my eyes they will forever remain a Tough Team, which is what most successful teams (across all walks of life) are known as.

 From my playing and coaching experiences and through interacting with literature in my Masters year, I have created a framework called ‘Tough Teams’. This framework fits into the ‘Default Play’ model under the ‘competence principle’. The bullet points below are elaborated on within the complete framework, however, this skeleton is an indication of what this framework entails:

 Tight unit

·      Built around a common and inspiring vision, including the subsequent values

·      Leaders create safe space

·      Connections through synergy (covering each other’s developmental areas)

Outlast, Outwork, Outthink everyone

·      Good old work ethic - go deeper and further than everyone else is prepared to go

·      Motivated by connection (vessels), vision & values

·      Common psychology; transformed, renewed mind, like-minded – growth mindset

Understand Pressure & Momentum:

·      Pressure is a friend not a foe - pressure is a trigger to stick to a system

·      Plans & processes to attain, maintain and regain momentum

Growth focused versus Outcome focused

·      Do a few things really well

·      Simplicity, clarity and effective

·      Agile, adaptive, adjustable

High standards & Hungry for continuous growth and development

·      Accountability - no compromises

·      Growth mindset - we can always get better, loss or failure is an opportunity to improve - not yet mindset vs lost cause