International Coaching is a Fine Art
Ireland coach Declan Kidney has come in for some criticism in recent months, particularly in the aftermath of the embarrassing defeat to England in Twickenham that closed out the Six Nations campaign. I'll put my hand up and admit that I have been involved in plenty of this disapproving reaction.
Like many other Irish rugby supporters, I've been unhappy with the lack of new faces and Ireland's inability to get the best out of our players, amongst other things! However, each of these criticisms has been balanced by the realization that coaching an international team is an incredibly difficult job. Kidney is obviously trying to do the best he can. He does not deliberately make decisions to enrage Irish supporters.
First off, and perhaps most importantly, there's the dilemma of how his team should actually play the game. Kidney's Six Nations squad was, as always, largely drawn from Leinster, Munster and Ulster. The problem for Kidney, and every international coach, is how he best combines the strengths of each province. Although Ireland's attack looked slightly improved this season (top try-scorers), and our defence became more aggressive as the tournament went on, there is work to do in this regard.
Should Kidney impose his ideas about how he feels rugby ought to be played on his squad? Or should he come up with a game plan that best suits the players at his disposal? During this year's Six Nations, it appeared that Kidney had taken the first option. At the moment, Ireland's style of play is not getting the best out of our indisputably good players. I am firmly of the belief that Ireland's game plan in New Zealand this summer has to be built around the excellent players we possess, in particular Jonny Sexton and the back-row of Ferris, Heaslip and O'Brien.
One of the main problems with being an international coach is that you don't deal with your squad on a daily basis until a tournament takes place. Kidney and his coaches get a limited amount of time on the pitch with the players. That's why I believe it's essential to build the game plan around the players as best we can. Obviously, Kidney won't be able to accommodate everyone's strengths into one playing style, but getting the utmost from our key players needs to be a more regular occurrence.
The limited exposure an international gets to his squad on the training ground actually makes him more of a 'manager'. Kidney has never been the most hands-on of coaches anyway. He has usually surrounded himself with the likes of Les Kiss and Gert Smal, experts in a given area of the actual coaching. The fact that he delegates the coaching to these guys highlights the importance of his work on the mental preparation of his squad. That is, ensuring the players are in the right frame of mind to perform to the peak of their abilities.
One of the keys to any successful squad is competition for places. However, that tussle for places must be balanced with allowing the players to feel comfortable enough to perform. It's not an easy task. Unfortunately, Kidney has lost the balance this season. His squad has been seriously lacking in competition due to over-loyalty to certain players. Without the danger of being dropped, some appeared lacking in motivation. What Kidney has done is understandable to a degree. He has created an environment where the players know that one bad performance won't see them dropped. The hope was that this would see the players repaying his loyalty with aggressive performances.
Unfortunately, the opposite has happened. It's been a bad season or two for Declan Kidney and Ireland. But it's not necessarily the end for him. As evidenced by 2009's Grand Slam, Kidney can create competition in his squads, can get the best from the players available and can motivate them to win. He has lost the formula in recent times, but some hard work on the summer tour can help tip things back towards balance. Ireland's squad selection, performances and results will all come under serious scrutiny. Who'd be an international coach?
