A Tough Time to be a Team Manager

We are all aware of the recent publicity given to the tussle between management and players in several counties. In each case, players felt that things were not right at management level. They were committed to training hard but their chances of winning were being reduced by the style, the level or standard of management. Is the problem caused by the players, caused by ineffective management or by the poor judgement of those who appointed the managers? It is difficult to know. We can only judge by what we read in the papers or hear in the media.

All Sports Federations have devoted many years to developing coach education programmes for coaches.  They have been very successful in the main and we are quite confident that the standard of coaching has risen dramatically over the past 20 years. The establishment of the National Coaching & Training Centre which has now become Coaching Ireland has been a major player is providing standards to the various Sports Federations. Some Federations, in fact, were well on the way to developing excellent system on their own bat.

However in recent years the role and duties of the manager has becoming increasingly scrutinised by the fans and the media. The bigger the expectation the more the manager’s work comes under the focus of all involved. Winning is seen as the only yardstick,

Because of the development of the coaching structure more players are becoming aware of modern coaching methods. While most of us ran laps of the field to get fit in the seventies, stamina is now seen as being sport specific. Players are more aware of what works for successful teams and if a manager is appointed who uses outdated methods, players can become frustrated. They see that they are losing the speed or their reaction by over-indulging in non-sport specific stamina training for instance.
With so many people entering business studies courses or being employed in a company with modern business leaders, players are becoming aware of the sports manager who just shouts, rants and raves with no man-management skills and even possibly a very poor annual training and competition plan. This situation leads to frustration even by a sincere and very dedicated bunch of players. They feel they are going nowhere. They perhaps feel that the years are passing them by with no chance of delivering on their commitment, skill and ability

This where SportTracker and Setanta College has come together to put on a special day for managers to come together and iron out the problems experienced in modern management. This is unique opportunity for clubs to expose their managers to the best practice available. If clubs spend many hours appointing a manger should they not now ensure that he or she is exposed to becoming a more educated manager to lead the youth of their club?

The Conference on Feb 20 in CityWest Hotel, Saggart, Co. Dublin is even more than that. It is very important not only to all who appoint managers, but people who want to manage and who are managing. We will look at management styles, the psychology of management, management skills and techniques, how to distinguish between good management and excellent management and the key area on man-management in the sporting context.

This day is for Adult Club Managers, underage managers, colleges and schools managers.
Do not miss this day - it could define the future of team sport in Ireland.

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