The Coach Doctor Podcast

Jamie Feeney is a former NRL player who played for both the Canterbury Bulldogs and Melbourne Storm during very successful periods in both club’s histories. He was coached by Steve Folkes and Criag Bellamy, two of Rugby Leagues most successful coaches. Jamie gives us an insight into the culture of both clubs after being involved in back to back Grand final seasons. Following his playing career Jamie moved into coaching roles. Initially with the Melbourne Storms pathway program and then as the Performance Program manager with NSWRL. More recently Jamie coached the Australian Women’s Rugby League side the Jillaroos and the Roosters NRLW side. Jamie is now based on the Gold Coast working with the Gold Coast Titans NRLW side. Some key take aways from this conversation for me were that there is no one best coaching style, different coaching styles bring different positives, the hard-working Steve Folkes style compared to the detailed Craig Bellamy style both brought success to their respective teams. It’s about choosing the style that works for you and the team around you.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

Jim is the current Queensland Reds Attack coach and was instrumental in both the Queensland Reds Super Rugby championship season of 2011 in his first stint with the club and this year in 2021 in his second stint with the club. Jim has also been the attack coach for the Wallabies and Head Coach of many clubs in the UK and Japan. Like some of my other guests Jim stands out for his passion to learn and further his knowledge – he has a Masters of Education in Sports Coaching and has published two research papers in the International Sport Coaching Journal. Jim is excited about constraints based learning, dynamic systems and ecological dynamics and is a great believer in the use of analogies to deliver his messages. He talks about attack in team sport being like water- building up and eventually always finding a way through a weakness. The key messages I got from this chat was: - The importance of the coach to create an environment where athletes can learn. If the garden is not growing you may need more water, more sunlight or some fertiliser – in other words improve the environment. - Design practice sessions that best represent the games. Have key principles, but outside of those, let players explore, discover cues, utilise cooperation and be creative. - Do the work, be patient, keep learning and build as a coach. - Have a release from coaching – find a hobby or an outlet so that the job doesn’t consume you and always staying connected with your family and the people you care about the most.If you would like to learn more about Jim’s research you can look up his journal articles listed below: McKay, Jim, Davids, Keith, Robertson, Sam, & Woods. Carl T.. (2021). An Ecological Insight Into the Design and Integration of Attacking Principles of Play in Professional Rugby Union: A Case Example. International Sport Coaching Journal. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1123/iscj.2020-0065.Mckay, J., & O'Connor, D. (2018). Practicing Unstructured Play in Team Ball Sports: A Rugby Union Example. International Sport Coaching Journal, 5(3), 273-280. https://doi.org/10.1123/iscj.2017-0095Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

After having a successful rugby union playing career with NSW Country and the Australian Wallaroo’s Alana then moved into coaching. Moving to Melbourne she worked with the Melbourne Unicorns club and was awarded the Australian Rugby Union Community coach of the year in 2017 before taking on the head coaching role with the Melbourne Rebels Super W side in their inaugural season. Alana has focused on developing a strong team culture with the slogan "a Rebel like her" being a daily attribute within the team. Another fantastic aspect to Alana's coaching was the idea of setting up growth groups to assist with connections and communication within the team. Another aspect of Alana’s coaching that really got me excited was her transition into using a games based approach over a traditional closed skills more regularly. Her comments around developing decision makers in chaos was music to my ears. To connect with Alana to get more insight into her coaching you can connect via the following social media platforms:LinkedIn: Alana ThomasInstagram: @alanathomas7Twitter: @alanathomas7Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

Professor Shane Pill from Flinders University in South Australia is one of the leading experts and researchers in coaching and sports education. He was recently awarded the Presidents Award by the Australian Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation for distinguished service to the profession. In Part 2 of this interview we discuss the power of games to develop a fully engaged athlete and the role game sense plays in Australian physical education and coaching. To engage with Shane further on this topic you can either follow him on: LinkedIn: Shane Pill PhD, MEd, BEd, LMACHPER, FACHPERTwitter: pilly66Or Search Shane Pill on the Flinders University Website to get a direct link to Shane's email.Some of Shane's publications can be found using the weblink: https://www.bookdepository.com/author/Shane-PillSuggested readings for coaches include: - The Spectrum of Sport Coaching Styles- Perspectives on Game-Based Coaching- Perspectives on Athlete-Centred Coaching- Play with PurposeThis podcast is Part 2 of 2.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

Professor Shane Pill from Flinders University in South Australia is one of the leading experts and researchers in coaching and sports education. He was recently awarded the Presidents Award by the Australian Council for Health, Physical Education and Recreation for distinguished service to the profession. Shane discusses his transition from a physical education teacher in the 1980’s to his role researching coaching pedagogies and specifically the game sense approach to coaching and teaching sport. He discusses the differences between pedagogical models of teaching skills through games and highlights the requirement for struggle to promote growth and development. Shane is a wealth of knowledge in this area and his explanations will hopefully go towards coaches being able to apply some of the methods he discusses to build more resilient and skillful athletes. Take away's from this episode are:1.That Kids and athletes play sports to play the game – the best way to prepare them for playing is by actually playing the game not by using one dimensional training drills that require little or no decision making. 2.A games based approach has to be purposeful and provide meaningful learning opportunities. 3.Athletes require some amount of struggle to learn and develop, but there has to be a struggle point – too hard and we lose the athletes, too easy and the learning process is not effective. This podcast is Part 1 of 2.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

On this episode my guest is Gina Haddad, Gina is an expert and published academic in the area of athlete leadership and has worked with and researched leadership groups in many team sports. She has studied leadership groups within Super Rugby, NRL, AFL, Football and International rugby union and has previously held positions as a High-Performance Consultant and education manager with Equestrian Australia. She is a lecturer and leadership and culture facilitator. The main take points from this conversation for me were:1)Setting up a leadership group needs to be authentic – doing it for the sake of it because that’s what the professional teams do won’t cut the mustard. Leaders need to be given a voice and be heard. 2)Leadership groups need to be diverse and cover a good cross section of the team so that everyone feels represented and included. 3)Leadership requires time and should be prioritised. 4)For athletes who have had little or no leadership training, providing some support around their roles and how leadership looks will assist them in becoming better leaders.5)Embed and consistently reference team values and have these driven by the leadership group.6)Do your homework around how you will select the leadership group and what their expectations and responsibilities will be. For more information please feel free to connect with Gina on LinkedIn via her name Gina Haddad.You are also welcome to contact myself to initiate a conversation via email or phone by emailing me at james@thecoachdoctor.com.auBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

In this episode I chat with Associate Professor Wilbur Kraak from the Sports Science faculty at Stellenbosch University on the Western Cape of South Africa. We discuss using academic literature in an applied coaching setting, using performance analysis as a tool to assist your coaching and the state of South African Rugby after the COVID 19 Pandemic interrupted community sport for almost two years. If you would like to hear more from Wilbur you can follow him on twitter and instagram @coachwilbur or connect with him through Linkedin as Wilbur Kraak.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

In Episode 5 I chat with Tim Rowland. Tim is a championship winning Strength and Conditioning coach who has a background in physiotherapy. Tim discusses how his background in physiotherapy has made him a better Strength and Conditioning coach. His ability in managing athletic performance and also developing state of the art rehab and prehab programs for players returning from injury. Most recently Tim played a large role in the preparation of the Gordon’s Highlanders Rugby Clubs first premiership in over 20 years within the Shute Shield Premier Rugby competition. Tim is now the part owner of the Physio Network which disseminates research in the field of physiotherapy and sports rehabilitation and puts it out in easy to understand language to improve practitioners application. If you would like to get in contact with Tim you can find him on the following platforms:Linkedin: Tim RowlandInstagram: @_theaclguyWebsite: https://www.physio-network.com/Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

In this episode I chat with John Novak who is widely known as Australia’s No. 1 Sports Mindset coach with his athletes quickly reaching National and International success at World Championships and Olympics. John is currently Head Mindset Coach for the Manly Sea-Eagles-NRL team in Australia. He has worked with hundreds of elite athletes and teams in 38 different sports. More recently he worked with Olympians Melissa Wu Commonwealth Gold Medallist and Olympic Bronze in the 10m Platform Diving and James Magnussen former World Champion Swimmer and an Olympic Silver Medallist. John is ultra passionate about coaching athlete mindset and is a ball of positivity. To contact John for more information go to: Web: https://www.johnnovaksport.com/ or https://www.boomerangeffect.com.au/ Instagram: @johnnovakboomerangeffect Linkedin: John Novak Facebok: John Novak BoomerangEffectemail: johnnovakboomerang@gmail.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.

In this episode I interview Olympic Sprint and Jump Coach Andrew Murphy. Andrew is a triple Olympian representing Australia at the Atlanta, Sydney and Athens games as a Triple Jumper. More recently Andrew has returned from Tokyo after coaching Rohan Browning, Australia's fastest man. In this interview we discuss the differences in roles as an athlete to a coach, the training requirements of an Olympic level athlete and the team work that goes into a sport such as Track and Field. Despite all of Andrew's achievements, he remains a life longer learner and is still looking to develop himself further as a high performance coach.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-coach-doctor-podcast--5032805/support.