The Confidence Coach's Sports Psychology Reports
On The Couch With Dr. Martin - A Sports Psychology Exclusive
This report was created by Martin Perry, exclusively for the Irish Independent. The aim of this special Sports Psychology report is to give insight into the psychology of Ireland's young new manager Steve Staunton.
Steve Staunton
It’s just over fifteen months since Steve Staunton, the self-proclaimed, ‘gaffer’, walked into his first job in football management. Eight games and four defeats later, including being threatened, mysteriously, with a fake Uzi machine gun, there are online petitions calling for his resignation, and he is being hounded by the media; so much so that the upcoming Croke Park matches against Wales and Slovakia appear to be critical to his nascent coaching career.
At the time of Staunton’s appointment Sir Bobby Robson said that he was, "really looking forward to working with the new manager and his team… Stephen's record and reputation speak for themselves and I am delighted to help and advise Stephen in any way he sees fit…. I am totally confident that the Irish international team has a really bright future."
So how have things come so quickly to a crisis point and what, if anything, can Steve Staunton do about it?
Although some, like Walter Winterbottom of England or Andy Roxburgh of Scotland arrived via different routes, traditionally the role of international football manager was a reward after toiling in the vineyards of league management. Once this had ripened into wisdom, a coach could be considered for higher office. International manager. Clearly, the international arena was not a place for the newbie or the naif. Not a place to learn ones trade. The faces of the tried, trusted and tested international managers, Lippi, Hiddink, Bruckner, Scolari et al are etched with their deep, encyclopaedic knowledge of the game.
By the time he was ready for the step up into the international arena, the club manager had already achieved some mastery of the coaching craft. However, the appointments of Jurgen Klinsmann to Germany and Marco Van Basten to Holland paved the way for unproven managers to lead at international level.
Klinsmann had to suffer endless abuse and criticism of his style and methods before the validity of his ways was recognized, as his team excelled at World Cup 2006. His fresh and innovative thinking and extrovert style were the catalyst German football needed. He proved the bridge from apprentice to craftsman could be crossed with well developed personal leadership qualities and a strong support team.
The criticism Steve Staunton has received during his brief tenure as manager, has been born out of a combination of inept team performances, especially in Cyprus and San Marino and the general perception of him as a leader. There is a sense of contradiction about him. The man expresses himself ready and able to lead an international team; the outcomes suggest otherwise. Criticism increases exponentially as logic butts up against fantasy.
It’s a critical time in Steve Staunton’s leadership development journey. To offset the mounting criticism, he must guard against becoming too defensive and introspective. Developing a shield of immunity to deflect the heat, will simply increase the national focus on perceived personal weakness. Honesty and frankness, topped with a healthy dose of self-deprecating humour and self-awareness can be the perfect antidote to criticism.
For Steve Staunton to succeed as manager and leader, he must seek to develop his communication skills. Inside the game, he is known as a man of high standards and integrity. He was also a decent captain who said little but would lead by example, more a Beckham than a Bryan Robson.
Communication is the ‘master skill’ of higher management. The motivational grit in the coaching oyster. To develop this critical capability, he should sharpen up his media image and learn how to project his ideas in a way which commands our attention and respect. Projection is the ability to convey your thoughts and ideas in a compelling way. It enables a leader to look and feel like a leader. It’s the quality Bill Shankly and Brian Clough had in abundance. They were naturals. But it can be learnt.
It thus becomes a self fulfilling prophecy, giving security both to those you lead and those you represent. Projection builds personal presence and charisma. It can be developed by, for example, a plethora of public speaking engagements. Public speaking builds communication confidence, helps develop rapport and empathy skills and sharpens the mind.
Also, he would benefit from some PR advice. To learn how to project his ‘human’ side would endear him to a now sceptical public. As an example, creating opportunities to appear on primetime Irish TV armed with a stack of footballing anecdotes. What the Irish public yearn for is a national manager who reflects, to some degree at least, the country’s spirit, something which Jack Charlton in particular managed to encapsulate.
Staunton's public image is quiet, reserved, introspective. The antithesis of what is needed to win over the burgeoning band of doubters. An improved public image will not accrue qualification points, but it will afford him valuable breathing space, giving him time to create a new self.
On the other hand, if Staunton considers it inappropriate to become something he feels he isn’t, then he can cultivate a spiky, oppositional relationship with the press. But it’s risky. Jose Mourinho and Sir Alex Ferguson can do it. For them, it’s a small war. It brings the apparently beleaguered family closer together. It’s the notion of everyone being against you. It enhances camaraderie. They are the enemy. We are wronged. In adversity it is core values which sustain the tribe.
It may not always play well with the media, but it gives his team a focus. And creates a winning mentality.
The Sports Psychology Summary...
With Irish expectations at rock bottom for the Wales and Slovakia games, it’s the perfect opportunity for Steve Staunton to show that he is, at least, learning from his mistakes. People do not expect perfection from the national manager. In fact we can empathise with frailties. However, even with integrity, weakness will never be misinterpreted as strength. The top quality people most look for and admire in a leader, someone whose direction they would willingly follow, is honesty. Time will tell whether Steve Staunton has the self awareness to recognise this.
