*Originally published 4th May, 2020*
I’ve recently seen a number of people posting pictures of certificates in ‘Creating a Culture of Excellence’ online; brilliant, well done to those taking part in e-learning and putting this time to good use. However, I thought about my playing career after doing an Instagram Live chat with my skipper from Rockdale City Suns in Australia and how we created an excellent culture during the 2006 double winning season.
During the chat we spoke about a few standout memories that tie into the reasons why we had a great team and I’ve broken it down into 5 key components that I feel made this a special squad.
1.Welcome
I really was an outsider coming into this group of players. I was one of the youngest, I had only played 2 seasons of football in Sydney prior to that (and those two seasons were spread across 3 years as I had a season playing university football in America in between), and I hadn’t grown up in Australia. That being said, from day 1, I was made to feel welcome. I sat in a corner of the dressing room next to two great characters, Peewee and Goose, I was immediately included in conversations, jokes and stories before, during and after training sessions. I can’t ever remember feeling unwelcome or ignored by a single teammate, from the senior guys, to the new additions, to those I competed with for a starting spot.
2. Hair Cut
Our first league game of the season was away to St. George, under the lights on a Saturday night. Those that know the geography of Sydney football will remember that we could see St. George’s stadium from the old Rockdale ground; derby day, my debut for Rockdale in the league. I didn’t mind, I was comfortable in the run up to the game and then...the manager made a big deal that myself and another young centre back were starting the game instead of Ric and Koto, the club captain and another experienced centre back. I did get nervous after that but, one of the senior boys took it upon himself to distract me.
I hadn’t cut my hair during pre-season and with my side burns growing out the way rather than longer, I did look ridiculous. So, Joey Moric got a pair of scissors from our physio’s bag and said he would trim them before we went out to warm up. Well, he trimmed them so high I think my sideburns finished above the top of my ears! I freaked out after seeing the first cut but I couldn’t refuse the second at that point. Joey may have offered his services with malicious intent but I don’t think so. His actions took my mind off the manager’s words; I went out and just played, no thoughts of the manager, somewhat worried about my hair but, playing my natural game.
3. Play Hard, Train Harder
This one is simple. We trained harder during the week than our games were at the weekend. The most intense ‘Rondo’, ‘Monkey’ or ‘Cheva’, depending on where you are in the world I’ve ever taken part in was at Rockdale. The first thing we did every session was Cheva and the tempo and tone was set by the senior players. It was serious fun. We had guys who had played in Germany, Sweden, Croatia, trained at the Australian Institute of Sport and represented Australia. This will sound familiar to those who have heard Rio Ferdinand talking about training at Man Utd or Eddie Jones after watching Pep Guardiola’s Bayern Munich team. From personal experience, this player driven intensity has lead me to some of the best seasons of my career.
4. Cheva
I know I mentioned this in the last point however, a culture of excellence requires repetition of high standards on a daily basis and this is where standards were set for each session at Rockdale. But this point ties in with my first point too, Welcome. During Cheva, we played with 3 players in the middle and 2 of the 3 had to touch the ball before anyone changed places. This led to many battles with quick transitions from possession to defending and trying to win the ball back before the second defender got a touch. When the boys keeping possession got into a rhythm, it really got flying. When this happened and the pass count got to 30 or 40, Joey Moric would pick up the ball, give a cheer, all the boys would clap to rile the defenders and we would start again.
For some reason, after about a month of being at the club and still in pre-season, I picked up the ball during Cheva and gave the cheer. The group went silent for a second then burst into laughter. Joey then proceeded to tell me to get into the middle as he was the one to decide when the ball got picked up. He did it with a wink, a smile and I think my confidence (or arrogance) helped me integrate into the squad and show that I was on board with the group mentality.
5. Leadership
It’s easy to talk about leadership but to be really effective, it must be shown. I remember during one match in which the referee was particularly bad, our captain, Ric, instructed the squad to stop talking to the ref; it was getting us nowhere and the more we talked, the more bad decisions were given against us. I didn’t listen, a couple of minutes into the second half, I spoke out. Ric didn’t say a word, he didn’t need to. One of his lieutenants ripped into me, “WHAT THE F@$K DID RIC JUST SAY?! SHUT UP!” Leadership isn’t the responsibility of one person, it’s a collective mindset. Being held accountable for your actions is a huge part of cultures of excellence. One captain but eleven leaders on the pitch.
This leadership was none more present than the day of the 2006 Cup Final. I had just come back into the squad after being out with a concussion but, I felt as though I had trained and played well enough throughout the season to deserve a place in the squad. I was binned, not even on the bench. I went nuts, I was angry and distraught at missing out. Then the U20s manager, Gruba, and our captain spoke to me. I was spitting about the season, that we hadn’t lost a game I had started, I deserved this. Between Ric and Gruba, they let me know I was valued, I was part of this squad and that I had contributed to the team winning the League and would deserve my medal from the final as much as anyone else.
Ultimately, I believe a culture of excellence is down to people. It’s not just the coaching staff, it’s not just the players, it’s a club wide effort for consistent high standards. Pushing each other on a daily basis to do even the little things well.