Great player, great coach?

Great player, great coach?

By Dr Steven Rynne

The widely held view is that coaches are critical components of the sporting landscape, however, what makes for a great coach remains relatively obscured and largely taken-for-granted.

One such taken-for-granted (in men’s team sport especially) is the value of coaches having been a former elite athlete in the sport they now coach.

Former greats in coaching

A quick look at the tennis emphasises the point – Ivan Lendl coaching Andy Murray, Michael Chang coaching Kei Nishikori, Goran Ivanisevic coaching Tomas Berdych, Carlos Moya coaching Rafael Nadal and previous coaching associations between Amélie Mauresmo and Andy Murray, Boris Becker and Novak Djokovich, Stefan Edberg and Roger Federer, Lyndsay Davenport and Maddison Keys, as well as Martina Navratilova and Agnieszka Radwanska.

Even most of the talk about the prodigiously talented but generally vexing Nick Kyrgios has revolved around whether former Australian great Lleyton Hewitt will take on the challenge of coaching him.

Similarly, the Australian men’s cricket team has Darren Lehmann at the helm and the recent T20 International cricket series against Sri Lanka saw three former greats, Justin Langer, Ricky Ponting and Jason Gillespie, combining powers in coaching roles.

At the Tour Down Under earlier in the year, former Australian cycling greats Brad McGee, Matt White, Luke Roberts, and Brett Lancaster were in charge of teams in the UCI World Tour event.

The football codes offer a similar story with the likes of Tony Popovic, John Aloisi, and Kevin Muscat in charge of A-League teams while Nathan Buckley, Chris Scott and twin brother Brad Scott have control of AFL teams.

The NRL has the likes of Ricky Stuart, Des Hasler, Paul McGregor, and Trent Barrett, among other former elite players in charge of teams.

Questions being raised

It is so commonplace to have a former legend of the sport at the helm in most men’s professional competitions that elite coaching has been called the ‘exclusive preserve’ of such greats. Periodically, however, there are questions raised about the merits of ex-elite athletes moving into elite sports coaching positions. More specifically, at issue is those elite performers who move almost immediately into head coaching positions (as opposed to those who move into development roles, further education, or similar).

Essentially, the question asked is does being a former elite athlete in the sport qualify you to coach? Most would offer a firm no when asked so directly. So why is the practice of players moving straight into high performance coaching positions still seen to be acceptable in some places?

The common reasoning is that former elite players who are appointed to head coaching roles are able to immediately garner player ‘respect’. This view is often accompanied by a statement about “wanting someone who you know has been there and done that before”.

In 2014, when speaking of the value former world greats had in their coaching arsenal, Michael Chang (current coach of Kei Nishikori) said “we’ve been there. We know what it takes, and we know from experience what has worked and what has not.”

If it is the case that players want / need guidance from those who have done it before them, a relevant question is “how much experience is enough?” One game? One tournament? One season? A top 100 finish? A top 10 finish? A podium finish?

Of course, no evidence exists for the need to have performed at the highest level to be able to coach there. More specifically, there is no established threshold to be crossed by performers to be eligible for future coaching success.

Evidence regarding former players moving into coaching

There is, however, some evidence for coaching advantages related to being a former elite performer. Previous analysis has shown that experience in the sport you now coach has the potential to contribute coaching skills related to sport-specific knowledge such as technical and tactical aspects, as well as being ‘enculturated’ into the sport. Former elite athletes have been found to have the potential to develop skills relevant to coaching through being in senior or leadership positions.

Sporting greats also tend to have enhanced opportunities to learn from coaches as athletes given their long careers. There are also a variety of more social factors at play.

Of course, former elite athletes have the potential to develop high level contacts within and between sports. They are also often privileged regarding their progression through compulsory coach accreditation structures. And of major issue in this piece, they are afforded enhanced career prospects within coaching.

However, the research shows that there are advantages for coaches who have NOT played at an elite level. For example, those without elite playing backgrounds are generally able to start coaching and developing their craft much earlier.

In short, they tend to have more extensive and varied experiences in all aspects of coaching work and the pathways of their sport.

They have also generally had more opportunities to gain other qualifications and experiences that are valuable and relevant for coaching. For example, while the playing greats were forging their careers as athletes, others were able to gain degrees in coaching-relevant fields such as physical education, sport science, or human movement studies.

Problems with direct transitions

So, what’s wrong with the uncritical acceptance of elite players immediately moving into elite coaching?

A major issue is that it unnecessarily narrows the potential coaching talent pool by excluding most people from even having the chance to fulfil coaching roles at the top levels of sport. Of potentially greater significance, is that for organisations looking for creativity, innovation, and a point of difference, hiring a ‘favourite son’ may serve to reinforce the status quo.

Another concern is that hiring those who have just finished playing may not be fair on the incoming coach. Encouraging elite players to move immediately into roles that they are not adequately prepared for is, in some cases, the metaphorical equivalent of throwing them to the wolves.

There may also be a variety of issues that arise when someone transitions quickly from being in the team (i.e. playing with teammates) to being in charge of the team (i.e. being in charge of those same players).

The situation arises for a number of reasons. Indeed, the allure is obvious in that the fledgling coach is offered a chance they know is rare and may not be offered again.

For the organisation, there is the chance for multiple payoffs regarding team success and securing a popular and recognisable face for the organisation.

However, just as we would never expect that just because you have been a student you can immediately teach, of that just because you have been managed that you can be a manager, we should not expect that just because you have played you can coach.

Implications and ways forward

The implication for those who employ and those who support high performance coaches is that a starting point should be a thorough understanding of what the work of a coach actually entails.

It is poorly understood – sometimes by novice coaches themselves.

From there it should be possible to undertake a more considered appraisal of coach backgrounds so that areas of strength may be leveraged further and perceived ‘gaps’ be addressed or worked around.

Moreover, the development of coaches has a social aspect that should be more strongly considered if individual and organisational outcomes are to be optimised.

A point that should be emphasised is that being a former great of the sport is not a limitation in moving to high performance coaching roles. Indeed, there are many great things that can come from a career devoted to excellence in a sport. However, moving too quickly (i.e. without developing coaching skills that complement existing sport-based knowledge) may limit impact and longevity in the role.

Finally, no matter who secures high performance coaching roles, the individuals and those employing them should recognise that their appointment does not signal the end of learning.

High performance coaching is an unquestioningly tough job and coaches should seek out and be afforded appropriate support throughout their careers.

Dr Steven Rynne is a Senior Lecturer and Program Convenor for Sports Coaching with the School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences at The University of Queensland, Australia. The University of Queensland is the only Australian university to be awarded Top 5 status across the QS World University’s, Shanghai Ranking’s and CEOWORLD Magazine’s global rankings of Sport and Sport science and is considered to be in the top 2 universities in the world for sport research.

Steven has worked and conducted research with a variety of peak domestic and international sporting bodies in the areas of high performance coach learning and Indigenous sport. Steven teaches undergraduate and graduate students, is a registered HPE teacher, and coaches track cyclists.