"Lost the dressing room"

[Budgie]

I've only heard the term "lost the dressing room" in the last decade or so and wonder how it happens and if there's anything a coach can do.
I'm interested because all the talk is now that The Magnificent Brad Arthur has "lost the dressing room", while at the same time, the other loser coach Trent Barrett, is apparently really loved by the players but has SFA to teach them.

In a great article in the SMH by Andrew Webster - https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/i-...-fittler-into-a-champion-20180601-p4ziub.html - there's this:

“I know it’s over,” Fittler said. “I’ve got no control over them. They aren’t responding.”

He seems to have figured it: “I’d lost the dressing-room long before that season,” Fittler says. “I lost it after Origin the year before. We were 12 from 15, winning the comp, then Braith, Mitchell [Pearce], Fitzy [Craig Fitzgibbon], Willie [Mason] … They were pretty much blamed for NSW’s loss. They sledge-hammered those blokes. I just didn’t realise. I didn’t know what they were going through. It all went to ****. That next pre-season, you could tell it was going to be a train crash.”

Gould adds later: “I was quite angry about what some of those players did to him,” Gould says. “That’s where he learned about selfishness. That’s the first real example of selfishness he’d seen."

It's gotta be a lonely place being coach and striking that balance where the players will go that extra mile for you when they're guaranteed a massive pay cheque win, lose, or golden point. And then suddenly, one day, they won't.
Have any of you former footy players ever seen it first hand? Anyone read more about it? What happens? Does it start with one player? Is it just like high school?
Just pondering.

 

[Mark from Brisbane]

I’ve often wondered the same thing.

I’m thinking it might start with the leadership group not being happy and then influencing the younger players.

But to be honest don’t really know either!

 

[pjayz]

Well, back when I played for the St.Ives under 7’s rugby team, this upstart coach had the audacity to make fun of my new haircut at the time.

From that moment forward he was dead to me... I white-anted that Jerry Seinfeld wanna-be until there was nothing left but a faint memory of what his life used to be.

By the time I was done the entire team had totally disowned him, nobody laughed at his smarmy little jokes anymore, and I even had his own son heckling him like the washed up comedic butt scratch that he was.

Wow... that was cathartic... thanks Budgie.

 

[BOZO]

I’ve often wondered the same thing.

I’m thinking it might start with the leadership group not being happy and then influencing the younger players.

But to be honest don’t really know either!

I don't know either feathered friend . All I know is .....

We've lost that Manly Winning feeling
that Manly Winning ' feeling
We've lost that Manly Winning feeling
Now it's gone, gone, gone, woh, woh, woh.

 

[Sue]

I dare say the “ air of entitlement “ which is rife these days means there is little room for adversity. Nowadays they are mollycoddled from young teenagers and rarely work hard for anything.

I coached an underage Burleigh side a few years ago with Ex Saint Paul Upfield.Had 5 or 6 guys who had scholarships with NRL side. In terms of raw natural talent one of the least talented was Jai Arrow. He worked hard and showed respect to all around him, unlike the others who were to put it bluntly dickheads.

He is playing Origin. Never heard of the rest of them. Go figure.

In a nutshell a modern coach in my opinion must be me a man manager but make discipline a top priority and make the players earn his respect.Making excuses for poor play and behaviour and trying to be their best mate is doomed from the outset.These kids are not easy to handle.

And he must know his stuff too of course.

 

[jbb/james]

I think its only possible to lose the dressing room for 2 main reasons

Eiither your a tosser and know bugger all

Or you have players in the midst that feel they are bigger than the collective
They dont like the culture the coach wants, they dont want to be held accountable, or they just think they know it all. We all know how crap it is to work for **** managers and if you dont , you may be one f them. Lol

Some players just dont like being treated like everyone else , and believe they deserve special considerations

Either way its is generally led by marquee type player with plenty of options, with more regard for themselves than the team.

But if the coach is just ****, well fair enough sometimes.

Didnt a souths player once kick jason taylor in the head as they thought he was a dick.He was a guy that looked like he lost the dressing room and paid the price,

Footy is a funny community. You have to cuddle and talk most players up which they accept with glee, but when the chips are down and hard work and discipline is required, some just want another boss.

I love the brad arfur story though. Its so parramatta. Arthur coaches the eels, they sack him because he is useless, takes a secondry role at manly for 2 seasons i think , then they pay him bigger bucks to come back. Oh and guess what he is still ****

His coaching style and some of his squad seem worlds apart though in attitudes.

 

[Harvies elbow]

I've only heard the term "lost the dressing room" in the last decade or so and wonder how it happens and if there's anything a coach can do.
I'm interested because all the talk is now that The Magnificent Brad Arthur has "lost the dressing room", while at the same time, the other loser coach Trent Barrett, is apparently really loved by the players but has SFA to teach them.

In a great article in the SMH by Andrew Webster - https://www.smh.com.au/sport/nrl/i-...-fittler-into-a-champion-20180601-p4ziub.html - there's this:

“I know it’s over,” Fittler said. “I’ve got no control over them. They aren’t responding.”

He seems to have figured it: “I’d lost the dressing-room long before that season,” Fittler says. “I lost it after Origin the year before. We were 12 from 15, winning the comp, then Braith, Mitchell [Pearce], Fitzy [Craig Fitzgibbon], Willie [Mason] … They were pretty much blamed for NSW’s loss. They sledge-hammered those blokes. I just didn’t realise. I didn’t know what they were going through. It all went to ****. That next pre-season, you could tell it was going to be a train crash.”

Gould adds later: “I was quite angry about what some of those players did to him,” Gould says. “That’s where he learned about selfishness. That’s the first real example of selfishness he’d seen."

It's gotta be a lonely place being coach and striking that balance where the players will go that extra mile for you when they're guaranteed a massive pay cheque win, lose, or golden point. And then suddenly, one day, they won't.
Have any of you former footy players ever seen it first hand? Anyone read more about it? What happens? Does it start with one player? Is it just like high school?
Just pondering.

Jack Gibson only stayed 3yrs at one club at a time.
Thus is one reason why.
Queen Arthur has had 5; Trent is in his 3rd.
Neither has improved their team.
Both are playing like sh*t.

 

[ManlyTragic]

If you can’t find the dressing room you shouldn’t be coaching!

 

[Harvies elbow]

F*ck it.
I've lost my patience, never mind the dressing room.
Trent has one week to turn it around or I'm signing up to @strone33's sack Barrett club.
I just need to know how I sign up and how much.
We are Sea Eagles.
We have no patience for non success.
Why have I listened to the hippy's????

 

[manly al]

Think that this term can be blown out of proportion a bit in sport when a team or individuals just do not seem to be performing and sometimes unfortunately it can become a self fulfilling prophecy when it should not really be warranted . Probably just have to refer to the Panthers again as an example where Griffin had supposedly lost his players respect and the dressing room at the season start and yet have been travelling very well as the season has progressed.but no doubt the difference there is that his charges have real hunger , pride , professionalism and can regularly produce the skill [ particularly half"s ] to help get some good results Barrett has some runs on the board this season for still bringing the best out of some some players but for whatever reason conversely has had some of his key players just not performing at an expected and consistent level . Barrett also just seems to put too much faith and dismissive confidence that D C E for instance can always deliver , that some of his marginal selections will somehow show better form and some really staid game plans .I guess that if he can not come to terms with this reality and some or most of his players can not try to adopt and adhere to the Panther's example for instance , no doubt there will continue ti be problems for him and the team .

 

[Woodsie]

Jack Gibson only stayed 3yrs at one club at a time.
Thus is one reason why.
Queen Arthur has had 5; Trent is in his 3rd.
Neither has improved their team.
Both are playing like sh*t.

Elbow .... and Mary is in his 4th at Dragons ... and Bellache is in his ?? at Melb. It is a different world from Jack's ... with the salary cap and 3/4 year contracts it can take a coach 4 years to build the team and dynamic that he needs ...

 

[Sue]

Elbow .... and Mary is in his 4th at Dragons ... and Bellache is in his ?? at Melb. It is a different world from Jack's ... with the salary cap and 3/4 year contracts it can take a coach 4 years to build the team and dynamic that he needs ...

Yep. Year three an d we are progressing nicely.Just that pesky little problem of avoiding the spoon in year three

 

[Harvies elbow]

Elbow .... and Mary is in his 4th at Dragons ... and Bellache is in his ?? at Melb. It is a different world from Jack's ... with the salary cap and 3/4 year contracts it can take a coach 4 years to build the team and dynamic that he needs ...

Woodsie old mate.
Don't lay that sensible sh*t on me while I'm trying to focus on a tirade.
You know I'm confused enough already.

 

[Budgie]

Think that this term can be blown out of proportion a bit in sport when a team or individuals just do not seem to be performing and sometimes unfortunately it can become a self fulfilling prophecy when it should not really be warranted . Probably just have to refer to the Panthers again as an example where Griffin had supposedly lost his players respect and the dressing room at the season start and yet have been travelling very well as the season has progressed.but no doubt the difference there is that his charges have real hunger , pride , professionalism and can regularly produce the skill [ particularly half"s ] to help get some good results Barrett has some runs on the board this season for still bringing the best out of some some players but for whatever reason conversely has had some of his key players just not performing at an expected and consistent level . Barrett also just seems to put too much faith and dismissive confidence that D C E for instance can always deliver , that some of his marginal selections will somehow show better form and some really staid game plans .I guess that if he can not come to terms with this reality and some or most of his players can not try to adopt and adhere to the Panther's example for instance , no doubt there will continue ti be problems for him and the team .

Says a great deal about the footy media. For all intents and purposes, Manly and Penrith were virtually equal at the end of last year. At the start of the year it was all about Griffin being hopeless, "lost the dressing room", etc. and Baz was Mr Great Guy. Half way through the season and look at the difference between the two clubs. Both riddled with injuries, yet one is riding high and the other battling to avoid the spoon. Meanwhile, the media are not hailing Griffin and still referring to Baz as Mr Great Guy, albeit a great guy who is suffering unnecessarily at the hands of the dreaded Sea Eagles. Sheesh!

 

[lsz]

I am pretty sure the term comes from English Football....and is pretty much driven by player agents who are keen to get the manager to move on for some reason (not being selected etc) or by disgruntled players

Remember almost everything in the league media is driven by some form of agenda. Take the eels, what better way to protect under performing players than by saying it is the coaches fault as he “lost the dressing room”

 

[Andrew..]

From my limited understanding love without respect is pretty much a useless commodity, in fact, it's more of a convenience but the person doling out all the platitudes is just as much to blame as the person taking advantage. Look at all the best coaches, they go into bat for their players but they certainly don't sugar coat the truth....You'd have to know the club dynamic before you 'd know if this applies in our case but some of the post-game interviews make me wonder.

 

[wedgetail eagle]

Back in ‘13 this happened to David Furner, the media describing it as a Raiders mutiny.

 

[maxta]

Many good judges are adamant the best coaches are the best managers of ppl before players.
If you can work out what makes a player tick, it is a big part, as there are so many various personalities in every team.
The knowledge of the game will earn respect, but it’s a 2 way street as often you have every player seeing themselves differently than how the coach views them and what they can bring to the team.
Unhappy players will create a rift that can send a club downhill overnight.
To lose the dressing room is basically saying the players don’t respect the coach and don’t buy into the coaches expectations.
Teams that capitulate and not compete are a giveaway....if you watch Melbourne even in a loss, you can tell Bellamy has NOT lost the dressing room.

 

[nightster]

Well, back when I played for the St.Ives under 7’s rugby team, this upstart coach had the audacity to make fun of my new haircut at the time.

From that moment forward he was dead to me... I white-anted that Jerry Seinfeld wanna-be until there was nothing left but a faint memory of what his life used to be.

By the time I was done the entire team had totally disowned him, nobody laughed at his smarmy little jokes anymore, and I even had his own son heckling him like the washed up comedic butt scratch that he was.

Wow... that was cathartic... thanks Budgie.

was that the 1958 under 7s ..... I played in that team I remember that dildo head coach ....

 

[Woodsie]

@Budgi

Yep. Year three an d we are progressing nicely.Just that pesky little problem of avoiding the spoon in year three

and that has .... what to do with Jack Gibson ... or my post .....??