Whilst listening to this Sunday’s edition of BBC Radio 5Live’s Sportsweek programme – hosted by the excellent Gary Richardson – there was an interview with former England rugby union coach, Stuart Lancaster. Richardson and he were discussing Lancaster’s time as coach and discussed extensively England’s performance at the previous Rugby World Cup.
The way Lancaster spoke of his personal experiences after the loss against Wales, and the fallout that subsequently came after England were knocked out of the tournament at the hands of Australia, was genuinely touching. He spoke of his first thoughts being for his family, particularly for his wife and daughter who were in the stands at Twickenham for the match against Australia. He shared his relief when he had found out that his wife had sensed England’s impending doom and had decided to leave the stadium prior to the final whistle.
The public reaction to England’s failure was substantial and the media quickly made Lancaster the object of their criticism; articles such as Gavin Mairs in The Telegraph assessed the 10 things Lancaster himself got wrong.
In the interview with Richardson, Lancaster told of the impact the mass criticism had on his parents, “The first thing I did after the Uruguay game was come back to Leeds but then very quickly get back to Cumbria to see my mum and dad because they’re the ones who feel the pain more so than anyone. Probably only Mum can describe the pain that she feels when someone’s criticising her son. It reassured them when they saw me that I was still the same person and I was fine in myself – as far as you can be fine in yourself at that point.”
Hearing this very personal anguish from a high profile coach was powerful and is something the public don’t often get access to.
With the evolution of the 24 hour news cycle that has grown with services such as Sky televisions’ Sky Sports News HQ channel, and the advent of social media, the cult of the manager has been increased to even further heights. The level of attention and scrutiny placed upon coaches has led to an almost absolution of responsibility for players when under-performing.
During England’s failed bid to qualify for Euro 2008, manager Steve McClaren was dubbed ‘The Wally with a Brolly’ after England crucially lost to Croatia in a rain soaked night at Wembley. Despite the England team not performing well throughout the qualification campaign—and goalkeeper Scott Carson making a horrendous error in the final match against the Croats—the blame was fully laid at McClaren’s door.
After having his personal and professional credibility publicly and continuously eroded, he sought redemption in Dutch football with FC Twente, winning the Dutch Eredivisie in his second season. The result of this near-persecution was that a very promising and well-respected coach was lost to the English system.
Although he is widely recognised as possessing superior coaching skills than managerial ones, the way in which it wasn’t just enough to criticise his managerial skills, but also to mock and ridicule him for using an umbrella as shelter, whilst he made his half-time notes on the touchline, just seems crass and unjust.
What has been refreshing this season during Leicester City’s march to the summit of the Premier League has been the sincerity and respect shown to Claudio Ranieri. Due to his calm demeanour and softly spoken ways, Ranieri is almost treated as ‘everyone’s favourite uncle’.
Despite the very positive esteem that Ranieri has been held in this season, the manager being the all powerful presence still dominates our back pages.
Arsene Wenger is constantly held responsible by fans and pundits for his players’ shortcomings, yet it is not he that goes onto the pitch between February and March and drops points against lesser opposition. His players take credit for early season form, but demonstrate a consistent mental block as soon as the heat of expectation is upon them. This is surely more to do with their own temperament rather than Wengers’ tactical plans.
Likewise, although there were undoubtedly problems of his own making, it is a very difficult proposition to solely blame José Mourinho for Chelsea’s horrendous form this season up until his sacking in December. Unless his pre-match team talks contained explicit instructions for his players to miss scoring chances, give the ball away and concede sloppy goals, a measure of accountability must accepted by the players.
When considering Wenger and Mourinho, their actions and the clubs results are endlessly debated in radio talk shows with fans encouraged to call in with their opinions; and of course, those fans with moderate views don’t make for entertaining shows or win ratings.
Especially with Wenger, the feeling has built up over time to the point where the whole of the clubs fan base is split down the middle; some are part of the ‘In Wenger we Trust’ camp, others firmly believing ‘Wenger Out’. The consistently high levels of negative emotion shown towards the Arsenal manager must be difficult for him to take, even with so many years of experience in management.
In the case of Lancaster, his candid interview puts things into some kind of perspective. We all love sport because of the thrills it give us. The subsequent highs and lows come with the territory of being passionate about specific sports or teams, yet we often over look the personal impact being under the microscope of top-level sport has on the individuals involved and their loved ones. Yes, men such as Lancaster, McClaren and Wenger put themselves in the positions to hold that responsibility, but when their personal dignity is the focus of attention rather than the sport itself, surely they must think; is it really worth it?
