It’s the division one play off and the City Ground, Nottingham is buzzing. Forest are eight minutes away from a Wembley assignation which history and destiny seem to demand. Rolling back the years, The Championship is within touching distance. Suddenly, Yeovil pull a goal back and panic sets in. Coach, Colin Calderwood tries to defend his now precarious lead, but it is too late. They have lost the initiative. In extra time Forest are down to nine fit men. Exhausted and dishevelled they are ready to capitulate. Yeovil seize the moment and plunder a fifth goal. At the final whistle […]

Its half time in Englands European Championship qualifier against Andorra and an angry mob has gathered to abuse the underperforming, lifeless, England players. The majority of the venom however is directed at the manager. Its the lowest point yet in Steve McClarens brief tenure as England boss. At the time of McClarens appointment, his predecessor, Sven Goran Erikksson said, I have no doubt that he has all the credentials to be very successful in the job and wish him all the best.” Nine games later, there are online petitions calling for McClarens resignation, and he is being hounded by the […]

It’s late into West Ham’s vital encounter with Tottenham Hotspur and the Hammers have managed to gain a 3-2 lead with minutes to go. Moments later, the visitors have plundered two goals to snatch the points. In the stands, Icelandic chairman Eggert Magnusson has his heads in his hands. Manager Alan Curbishley is aiming frustrated kicks at his water bottle. The fans are sitting dumb-struck in their seats. Like Newcastle United’s spectacular Premiership capitulation in 1996, it has all the hallmarks of a classic act of self-sabotage. What Would A Sports Psychologist Do?… With the Hammers staring relegation in the […]

It’s thirty minutes into Blackpool’s First Division encounter with struggling Brentford and the Seasiders, unexpectedly, find themselves three goals down to the relegation threatened visitors. It’s an atypical blip for Simon Grayson and his team, who have hauled themselves into promotion contention after a disastrous start to the season. There are a number of jobs in football that are considered intense management challenges, such as making Leeds United or Wolverhampton Wanderers driving forces in the game again. But what could be more daunting than the task of lifting Blackpool, one of England’s most famous clubs, back into the Championship, after […]

It is known as one of the safest jobs in the game. The previous incumbent had been there fifteen years. Yet, a mere fifteen games into his tenure at Charlton Athletic, Ian Dowie is sacked. His precipitous departure informs us of the pressures a new manager faces when replacing someone who has helped define a football club’s culture, its DNA. The next coach of Crewe Alexandra or Manchester United would face similar difficulties: the longer a manager serves a football club, the tougher it is for their replacement to shape it in their own image. Longevity is not, of itself, […]

It’s only the second Saturday of the new Championship season and at the Stadium of Light the long suffering locals are expressing their dissatisfaction. Sunderland have experienced a home reverse to Plymouth and Niall Quinn, if he didn’t know it already, is appreciating the daunting challenges which face him. The phone ins are hot with anxiety. What do the sports psychologists think? What are the problems confronting a manager trying to breathe life into a sleeping giant and how can he deal with them? With every so called ‘big club’, be it Sunderland, Derby County or Wolverhampton Wanderers, which has […]

it’s deep into the second half of World Cup Final and with Zidane and Henry pulling the strings for France it appears as if Zidane’s farewell will be glorious and positive; little were we to be aware of the vivid drama that was about to unfold. It was the psychology of sport at it’s best. Now we have to try to understand that at the very end, the moment where triumph reached out to grab his hand to take him to the pinnacle again, Zidane’s fingers slipped from the grasp of victory and he slid down the cliff of failure […]

It’s January 12th 2005 and Jose Mourinho’s Chelsea have drawn 0-0 at home against Manchester United in the first leg of the semi final of the Carling Cup. Honours even, Jose and Fergie retire for a glass of fine wine. But, disappointingly, the wine is mere plonk and the embarrassed Chelsea boss promises to rectify the situation for the away leg. He is as good as his word, arriving at Old Trafford with a bottle of Portugal’s finest vintage. Thus he would wish to show his respect for Sir Alex and all he has achieved and, by implication, he is […]

In a recent survey for the Barclay’s Spaces For Sports project, Portsmouth’s back-flipping striker Lomana Lua-Lua was deemed to have the greatest celebration in the history of the Premiership, closely followed by Robbie Keane’s cartwheel celebration and Klinsmann’s ironic dive. Celebrations have become part of the DNA of sporting endeavour. The solid handshake or ‘high fives’ have become too common currency and form no real part of the modern goal celebration. Even after the most fortuitous goal imaginable, there must be jumping, hugging and kissing, for it is by such means that the players recognise their collective accomplishments. The psychology […]

It’s late October and Arsenal’s stuttering premiership challenge is about to be resurrected as Robert Pires steps up to take his second penalty of the game against Manchester City. It is now the stuff of history that he tried to pass the ball to Henry, and failed. The comment it excited ranged, predictably, from amusement to outrage, but how, it was not asked, could a player as experienced as Pires, a World Cup winner, lose, by his own admission, his nerve at the last second. After all, this was not a spontaneous act, it had been pre-planned, on the suggestion […]