case study ASK LEEDSTYKES! WITH PRESSURE? WANT TOLEARNHOWCOPE 01 Jan Date Final Results Table -2005 rugby? strongest turn-arounds end of season inPremier yet seen League ‘strategy’ what new So theteam did employ, tooff pull one of the and stayed loyal to existing the squad. coach, PhilDavies, second the most capped Welsh forward of time, all Refreshingly, club the didneither and by stood its both bolster team? the coach orthe bringing insome major signings to new had gone down honoured time the route of either firing (significantlythe less lucrative) National Division they 1, would reasonable be to assume that to avoid relegation to from adrift Worcesterthe next closest team. Therefore it BottomThey were! the of Premier league pointsand 5 assume that Tykes were in trouble by mid-March. on 2005 results these Based it would reasonable be to What Changed? 30 April 26 April 16 April 09 April 27 March 13 March 25 Feb 18 Feb 04 Feb 28 Jan vsLeeds Saints Northampton Tykes Match Ground Result Bath vs Leeds Tykes vs NECHarlequins Leeds Tykes vs Bath (Powergen CupFinal) Gloucester vs Leeds Tykes Leeds Tykes vs Wasps vsLeeds Tykes Leeds Tykes vsSaracens SharksvsLeedsSale Tykes vsLeeds Tykes Leeds Tykes vsLondon Irish Copyright of Gazing Performance Systems Enterprise Business Ltd. Business Enterprise Systems Performance Gazing of Copyright Franklin’s Gardens Recreation Ground Twickenham Kingsholm Headingley Causeway Stadium Headingley Edgeley Park Sixways Headingley Gazing PerformanceGazing Systems Enterprise Business Limited Capital House 67-69 St Johns Road 67-69 Johns St House Capital Isleworth Middlesex TW7 6NL TW7 Middlesex Isleworth 18 –9LOST 6 –10 WON 21 –10 WON 20 –12 WON 15 –33 WON 23 –22 WON 30 –15LOST 5 –14LOST 19 –10LOST 22 –15LOST 16 –5 WON F: +44(0)2085689782 T: +44(0)2085680298 E: [email protected] www,gazing.com United Kingdom United

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case study

do, but the Gazing approach allowed them to do just that. It enabled them to to them enabled It that. just do to them allowed approach Gazing the but do,

play for their country as well as the club) they already knew what they had to to had they what knew already they club) the as well as country their for play F: +44 (0)20 8568 9782 8568 (0)20 +44 F:

T: +44 (0)20 8568 0298 8568 (0)20 +44 T: almost immediately. As high performance athletes (the majority of the squad squad the of majority (the athletes performance high As immediately. almost

E: [email protected] E: positive peer group pressure and the players started using the language language the using started players the and pressure group peer positive

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humour returned to the squad. He said, “The training introduced a lot of of lot a introduced training “The said, He squad. the to returned humour

According to Phil, the players responded well and, pleasingly, a sense of of sense a pleasingly, and, well responded players the Phil, to According

techniques required to manage these diversions and stay ‘on task’. task’. ‘on stay and diversions these manage to required techniques

Relegation!” They then worked with the squad to adopt the mental mental the adopt to squad the with worked then They Relegation!”

that could potentially detract the players from the task in hand: “Avoiding “Avoiding hand: in task the from players the detract potentially could that

Brosnahan met the Leeds coaching staff and worked on the ‘diversions’ ‘diversions’ the on worked and staff coaching Leeds the met Brosnahan

With 6 weeks to go of the season, Martin and fellow Gazing trainer Bede Bede trainer Gazing fellow and Martin season, the of go to weeks 6 With

to deal with those distractions”. distractions”. those with deal to

approach provides that awareness and helps build the mental toughness toughness mental the build helps and awareness that provides approach

awareness and practice to deal with predictable mental distractions. distractions. mental predictable with deal to practice and awareness Our Our

other technical skill, (as Johnny Wilkinson proved in 2003!) But it needs needs it But 2003!) in proved Wilkinson Johnny (as skill, technical other process.

performance whilst under pressure is a skill that can be learnt, like any any like learnt, be can that skill a is pressure under whilst performance understandable understandable

this way “the mental strength required to consistently deliver a superior superior a deliver consistently to required strength mental “the way this built around an an around built

“ in approach their describes RFU, the to concept the introducing first for to use and was was and use to Martin Fairn, the company CEO and a founding partner who was responsible responsible was who partner founding a and CEO company the Fairn, Martin

that it was so easy easy “so was it that it was the fact fact the was it

toughness that Phil had seen Martin describe in the workshop. workshop. the in describe Martin seen had Phil that toughness

this sort of pressure called for a certain sort of ‘mental toughness’. A mental mental A toughness’. ‘mental of sort certain a for called pressure of sort this

lost television rights, but, more pertinently, lost jobs as well. Playing under under Playing well. as jobs lost pertinently, more but, rights, television lost

estimated £3million loss of revenue that the club would suffer as a result of of result a as suffer would club the that revenue of loss £3million estimated

dangers inherent in being dropped from the Premier Division; not just the the just not Division; Premier the from dropped being in inherent dangers

squad also knew the looming looming the knew also squad

and ambitious rugby. But, the the But, rugby. ambitious and

continuing to play expansive expansive play to continuing

in place and the team was was team the and place in

and post-game recovery were were recovery post-game and

for both their game preparation preparation game their both for

and knew their jobs. Strategies Strategies jobs. their knew and

squad were both well prepared prepared well both were squad

In a nut shell, Phil knew that his his that knew Phil shell, nut a In

share of sports psychology. psychology. sports of share

- had been exposed to his fair fair his to exposed been had -

playing and coaching career - that included winning forty six caps for Wales Wales for caps six forty winning included that - career coaching and playing

understandable process. This appealed to Phil, who in a twenty-five year year twenty-five a in who Phil, to appealed This process. understandable

last year, it was the fact that it was so easy to use and was built around an an around built was and use to easy so was it that fact the was it year, last

attending a workshop given by Gazing CEO, Martin Fairn, in November November in Fairn, Martin CEO, Gazing by given workshop a attending

Leeds Tykes? According to , who first heard about Gazing whilst whilst Gazing about heard first who Davies, Phil to According Tykes? Leeds

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So what was it about Gazing’s approach to mental conditioning that attracted attracted that conditioning mental to approach Gazing’s about it was what So

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Capital House 67-69 St Johns Road Johns St 67-69 House Capital

were already working with the RFU’s Performance Department. Department. Performance RFU’s the with working already were Enterprise Business Limited Business Enterprise

Gazing Performance Systems Systems Performance Gazing

Performance Ltd, then, a Richmond, Surrey-based training company who who company training Surrey-based Richmond, a then, Ltd, Performance

The mental coaching technique in question, is provided by Gazing Gazing by provided is question, in technique coaching mental The

adopt it. it. adopt

the dramatic impact that it’s having on those individuals and teams that that teams and individuals those on having it’s that impact dramatic the

that is attracting growing interest within the RFU for both its simplicity and and simplicity its both for RFU the within interest growing attracting is that Unusually, the club decided to invest in a new ‘mental coaching’ methodology methodology coaching’ ‘mental new a in invest to decided club the Unusually, case study powerful toolpowerful that make we more will of use coming inthe seasons!” allowed players the of sorts diversionary with all to deal pressure. It’s a development skills technical conditioning must up right nowthere rank alongside physical and But last the word must go to PhilDavies, said” who table and achieved. what Leeds intotable 2005/06.The below indicatesbottomthe leaguehalf the final of end are to season the crucial looking forward to developing further this had appearedthey to have on their supporting and impact the Leeds that are proud of role the had in they Not surprisingly, Martin and his team development’. ‘core values’ and players’ the ‘personal including such concepts as Club’s the butskills broader as well, aspects player’s technical, physical and mental of Club, the such as developing the map covers not just playing the side nextthe three years. Interestingly, the where Club the wants to get to over provide a‘road map’ that charts Tykes’,Leeds documents will these nextthe three years. Known as ‘Inside and map that club the can over use Gazing coaching and teams Leeds the are now developing aprogramme did and won with final the move the game.of stay ‘on task’ right to last the minute of last the game away to Bath. They many possible relegation permutations onto day final needed the Leeds and squad successfully by coaching their Leeds the team. And due to the a trip to hotbedthe of Kingsholm against Gloucester, were dealt with all of 60,000spectators with achance for winners the to play in Europe, or Even intensethe pressure of a Twickenham cup final versusBathfront in relax more and had aprofound affect whaton we were doing”. 12 Harlequins 11 Northampton 10 9 8 Leeds 7 Newcastle Worcester Team Premier LeagueTable asat 30/04/2005 22 22 22 22 9 22 22 Played 6 8 8 9 9 Won Drawn Lost Copyright of Gazing Performance Systems Enterprise Business Ltd. Business Enterprise Systems Performance Gazing of Copyright and Gazing has given us amap that has 1 0 0 0 0 2 11 15 14 14 13 365 13 416 410 378 380 475 For 45 473 421 493 431 596 Against Mental skills Mental skills 3 40 40 42 43 47 Points Gazing PerformanceGazing Systems Enterprise Business Limited Capital House 67-69 St Johns Road 67-69 Johns St House Capital Isleworth Middlesex TW7 6NL TW7 Middlesex Isleworth F: +44(0)208568 9782 T: +44(0)2085680298 E: [email protected] www,gazing.com United Kingdom United