Titans following Sharks

[Arlecchino 506]

I read with great interest about the appointment of Mark Boucher as head coach of the Titans.

When on 16th April 2013, John Smit was appointed as CEO of Sharks (Pty) Ltd I was initially supportive given that it was further rumoured that Smit would be "assisted" by Errol Stewart. The latter part of that never happened and according to some of my friends, Stewart has a senior position at Standard Bank which he was never likely to relinquish.

I then developed concerns that Smit would be lacking in skills for such a position and was surprised to discover that he had not continued his studies at Pmb University. Whether Smit has been any good as a CEO is only for those who worked with and for him to attest. It is of some concern that the audited financial accounts for the KZNRU and Sharks (Pty) Ltd were not presented at the April AGM.

If Smit had been as good at his job as is suggested by Board Chairman Stephen Saad, why would he be "let go" on such a reason as "to spend more time with my family"? Smit is clearly not a flighty person in the mould of a Jose Mourinho. He sticks at what he does and it seems odd that if he had been doing as well as is suggested, he would want to see his projects such as the reshaping of the Sharks and a relationship with The City and possibly a move to the Moses Mabhida Stadium, reach fruition.

Will we ever know the full story???

This brings me to the appointment of "Bouchie". 

Another great cricketer with more than just one skill. Boucher was for a time one of the best squash players in South Africa. His tragic accident necessitated his retirement from cricket and many wondered what this dedicated, determined young man might do. It was not long before he got his teeth into the "Save the Rhino" project and he has undoubtedly made a difference.

However, like Smit, it appears that Boucher has not furthered either his education or his administrative skills. He has stated that he does not have "badges or certificates" which would be requisite were he to seek such a position in England. Not just that, but to take on such a position means that the person needs to understand quite a lot about man-management (HR), inter-departmental communications, politics and a whole host of other administrative skills which demand experience and knowledge. 

I therefore wish Mark Boucher and The Titans well for the future, but at the same time wonder if this marriage is not heading for the same rocks upon which Smit's career foundered. 

[taipan 2,351]

As I understand it, he is only doing the coach's  job.

[J1M1 1,132]

I suspect the Titans are going to take a LOT of heat regarding this appointment from a racial perspective..........

[taipan 2,351]

1 minute ago, J1M1 said:

I suspect the Titans are going to take a LOT of heat regarding this appointment from a racial perspective..........

They have the BEE advantage of employing a disabled person.

[Arlecchino 506]

"I read with great interest about the appointment of Mark Boucher as head coach of the Titans."

[taipan 2,351]

Yeah, so all the badges and stuff he is talking about are coaching qualifications. I see no reason why he needs them or other qualifications.

it is a totally different situation to Smit.

[Arlecchino 506]

The point made Taips is that coaches in England and Aus are qualified. They attend courses and clinics and take tests to ensure that they have structure and have the technical ability. In short they are qualified as well as being experienced.

Being a coach now is not just about saying at the start of a game:

This is our warcry: Rah rah ree, kick him in the knee; rah rah runt, kick him in the other knee.

The head coach has a staff that he has to manage which includes fitness trainers, a batting coach, a bowling coach, a fielding coach, a wicketkeeper coach, physios, biokeneticists, dieticians, statistician etc. he needs to be aware of their skills and their needs to do the job. He needs to to be able to measure his team and the progress of his support staff and be able to prepare and present to team, staff and management.

It is a much more complex and exact position than was the case twenty or thirty years ago.

So the comparison of situation is exactly the same. Is Bouchie qualified to head up a First Class Franchise and its support staff?

[vlagman 1,466]

22 minutes ago, Arlecchino said:

So the comparison of situation is exactly the same. Is Bouchie qualified to head up a First Class Franchise and its support staff?

Well this is SA. How "qualified" is Domingo?

[taipan 2,351]

I fully understand how the coaching "badges" work. Whether they include management skills is a different discussion.

So by that logic a sales manager needs the same skills as a MD?

[Arlecchino 506]

How do the coaching badges work Taips?

Yes they do include management skills.

Yes a leader of a team must understand the needs of those around him/her and be able to anticipate the need for information. In this age your best salesman needs to do what he is best at. Additionally being good at sales does not equate to being good at management.

Therefore, Boucher was a fine cricketer, this does not mean that he will be a fine manager of cricketers.

Flag - I do not know? He has said that he gave Gary Kirsten his first coaching job. How he was qualified to do that I do not know. I do know that many cricketers who get to play the Counties circuit take professional cricketer's courses and this allows them to have a long-term future in the game.

For a while in London I was "attached" to a cricket club in North London where I did an umpire's course. Much more to umpiring than meets the eye as you may have seen from the fiasco in Durban. This was caused by poor presentation of the playing surface at the start of the Test which the groundsman had blamed on the drought and the umpires decided to overlook. However and ironically, the downpour over two days which brought over 60mm of rain caused the abandonment of the game called by the umpires citing - "dangerous playing surfaces".

 

[vlagman 1,466]

15 minutes ago, Arlecchino said:

Flag - I do not know? He has said that he gave Gary Kirsten his first coaching job. How he was qualified to do that I do not know. I do know that many cricketers who get to play the Counties circuit take professional cricketer's courses and this allows them to have a long-term future in the game.

LOL. I actually remembered that part after I posted my remark. Surely (fortunately?)  his "coaching skills" did  not rub off on Gary. 

Having said that, I was thinking the other day that, apart from his dodgy credentials, maybe Domingo is a bit unlucky as well. Gary had an almost perfect squad when he took over and one could safely say that he only had to make a few adjustments and change a few mindsets to take them to the top. Maybe Mickey My Maatjie has to take a bit of credit for that squad. 

Edited August 26, 2016 by vlagman

[taipan 2,351]

5 minutes ago, vlagman said:

LOL. I actually remembered that part after I posted my remark. Surely (fortunately?)  his "coaching skills" did  not rub off on Gary. 

Having said that, I was thinking the other day that, apart from his dodgy credentials, maybe Domingo is a bit unlucky as well. Gary had an almost perfect squad when he took over and one could safely say that he only had to make a few adjustments and change a few mindsets to take them to the top. Maybe Mickey My Maatjie has to take a bit of credit for that squad. 

You mean the coach of the number 1 test team in the world?

[vlagman 1,466]

1 minute ago, taipan said:

You mean the coach of the number 1 test team in the world?

Hahaha. Yes. That one. I saw that the other day. 

Edited August 26, 2016 by vlagman

[Arlecchino 506]

Cricket is such a strange game: it is a team game and yet the team is dependent on individual skills. Yes a bowler usually gets wickets through catches, but a really class bowler and we have a few seamers in that category, creates chances and gets the odd bowled but more lbws. 

On the other hand, nobody can do anything for a batsman other than call well and run fast. Batsmen pick themselves according to numbers. Temperament is another thing which can be worked on, although I say that some play well on the big stage and others simply can't.

In the case of coaching, some coaches know to let well alone and sometimes a flaw is spotted and corrected quickly. Sometimes a coach will screw up and turn a great cricketer into a bumbler - Jimmy Anderson being a case in point. 

I used to read Gary's blog and it was amazing how simple his philosophy was. In essence keep things as simple as possible and why change.

When he went to the interview for the India job he was asked what technology he would need for his presentation. He said he didn't need any as he was not going to make a presentation. He told BCCI that their cricketers knew how to play cricket and he wasn't going to teach anything about how to play. What he said he would do was teach them how to win consistently at home and abroad.

How well he did that.

Of course he took Paddy Upton with him

[taipan 2,351]

Part of the problem today in cricket is over coaching.

[J1M1 1,132]

2 hours ago, Arlecchino said:

called by the umpires citing - "dangerous playing surfaces".

Maybe lack of adequate insurance, and associated financial risk from being sued by players over loss of income trumps everything else?