Sydney FC Men

What a disaster and evidence of how a poorly prepared team will face the consequences. I do hope they can qualify for the finals but I also hope that radical changes are made to their program so that players are given the best oppurtunity to perform. There is a science to what we do and running players for an hour and performing plyometrics on the sand at the completion during pre season is not science it is commonly called stupidity. I would love for Sydney FC to adopt an approach that sees an Athletic Performance unit created and I think then we will see superior results

Sydney FC Girls

Fortunately we have qualified for the finals when it looked like we had no chance. Thanks to the other team I had worked with Central Coast we had the chance to make it if we beat Adelaide who we had lost to in the first round and we did. It has been an interesting season with us dominating every game bar one but not being able to score. From a conditioning perspective the girls have done well and all the data demonstrates in most instances we have dominated from a physiological stand point but I do believe speed is an issue in some positions this was most evident when we played Queensland who we face in the semi final. What can I do now?

• Ensure players are fresh and recovered
• Ensure injured players are given the best chance of playing by making sure rehab protocols are adheared to
• Ensure players are focused and their mental preperation is correct
• Ensure players do not overeat during festive season

Otherwise I cant change much now re speed and fitness but I can compile my notes on each player so we can work on weaknessess in the future

The Missing Link

With so much information (good information) and so much quality research and more importantly with so many great Athletic Development coaches in the World I ask you WHY do most athletic development coaches get it wrong? Is it ego, is it lack of knowledge, is it listening to the wrong people, is it boredom, is it lack of organisation, lack of commitment or is it a combination of all this and much more. I feel that to be a good AD coach you must be an educator of people and players and most importantly know how to source the good information. It is frustrating to see so many athletes so poorly conditioned because of the coach they have and if this coach took their head out of the sand they too could be a great coach - it is not that difficult - know your physiology, know your anatomy, biomechanics, motor learning, be organised and have the passion and commitment to make a program work. Being a great AD coach takes meticulous preperation and organisation and the ones that I know are great are living and thinking AD all of the time.

Where is the Problem

How do you identify problems with a program. I was speaking with my friend Ashley Jones and I was looking at the program he has for his team and it is no wonder they are the best club rugby union team in the world. Ashley is one if not the best athletic coach I know and his programs are always spot on. When I compare this to other programs I have seen it is no wonder clubs do not perform. Professional players need to be engaged full time and not just a session in the morning and maybe in the afternoon, they need to be educated on why they train and how best to look after their athletic development - bottom line is they need to be profesional and they need to be looked after by professionals.

Sydney FC W League

Well we have had a difficult run lately with this team but hope to win the last 2 games to qualify for the finals. Have been performing well in respect to possession but unable to score which is always a prooblem. The teams fitness has been maintained and in season there is little specific work completed accept for resistance and power sessions 2x/week and a speed/agility session 1x/week. All other work is completed with the ball with small sided games etc and even though as an athletic development coach I would like more time with a team only training 3x/week and the 2 strength/power sessions time is limited. Thety are a great bunch of girls and I hope it can all work out over the next 2 weeks.

Player coach relationship

When was the last time you sat down with your players to have a chat? Have you ever had 1 on 1 time with your players to determine their goals, their fears, their view of your program or are you one of those coaches that cant be told or doesnt want to accept feedback or thinks they are above the players. I do not believe that you have to be great mates with your playing staff in fact this can be detrimental but you must respect them and it is with this in mind that you should set aside interviews with players on a monthly basis to listen and build a relationship. To me this is imperative nd will help to make your programs better and your players better. I think one of the biggest problems with AD coaches is their ego be it with players or other AD coaches - leave the ego and lets learn off eachother and only then will we make advancements in the field - everyone wants to hide their secrets but what for this isnt rocket science. Respect your players and your peers!

Sydney's fitness coach quits

due to family reasons the Sydney FC fitness coach has departed. I have been very critical in this blog of this coach but it is very difficult being away from family and I wish him the best. I understand this completely as my kids mean the world to me and it is that battle between career and family but there will be other oppurtunities. What to do for Sydney FC.

Obviously an analysis needs to take place of the present conditioing program to determine if any manipulations can be made. I think on 1 game/week you can make changes with dedicated high intensity speed and agility sessions and also I think the DS protocol I have talked about previously could work very well to get the team to where they should be. It is obvious they are a little flat but this may be due to not winning and a win will make all the difference.

Stage 1 - Review
Stage 2- make adjustments
Stage 3 - monitor adjustments