The Sports
Psychology Blog
Today's Sports Psychology blog comes after Sheffield Wednesday's fourth successive defeat at the start of the Championship season.
Football: Sheffield Wednesday - The Cycle Of Confidence
Four
games four defeats for the Owls. Confidence is low. Players aren't
making themselves available for the ball. Chances are scuffed. Fear of
failure is to the fore.
So what should a team do when they are experiencing such a decline in confidence? The most important thing is to not be scared. Not be scared of making a mistake. Not be scared of incurring the crowds wrath. Not to be scared of the ball.
It takes courage to play through a confidence drought. You have to realise that the confidence you urgently seek is on the other side of that invisible wall. You think it will never return, but the truth is, it is nearby. It has simply become overlaid by doubts, fear and uncertainty. The more you hide from the ball, the longer the confidence drought continues. It confirms your fear.
Playing through the drought allows you to build courage into the fibre of the team. Courage and inner strength. It's a declaration of belief, that things are going to change and they are going to change at your hands. On your watch. You will not have fear.
It takes mental strength to play through a confidence drought. Brian Laws must encourage his cultural leaders to set the example. Being mentally strong is the difference between those teams that succeed and those who languish, forever wondering when their luck will turn. The question is, have Wednesday got the strength of mind needed?
