reading between

the lines

THERE HAVE BEEN TWO great

rugby books published in New Zealand

in the last 18 months – James Kerr’s

Legacy – 15 Lessons in Leadership from

the All Blacks and The Fixer, by John

Daniell.

John’s book is the perfect pre-match

preparation

ugby

orld

up.

Bookies will be everywhere, gambling on

rugby will reach record levels as the

tournament generates global interest and

speculation mounts on the merits of the

All Blacks, the Springboks, a Matt Giteau

and David Pocock revitalised Wallabies,

hosts England, Six-Nations Kiwi-

coached powerhouses Ireland and Wales

(sorry Editor, Scotland meets only one of

those two criteria!), the perennial

French threat and maybe, just maybe, a

Samoan surprise.

All with full on media hyperbole and

rumour. Will The Fixer prove prescient?

All the world (especially Stuart

Lancaster) has been voraciously reading

James’ great book. Seven of the key ideas

are outlined below and can be clearly

understood. But can they be religiously

executed and relentlessly pursued?

Can they become instinctive and

second-nature, especially in times of

crisis – which will inevitably occur in

top-class, knock-out rugby? James

outlines how the All Blacks:

- Devolved leadership to senior players

by forming a players’ leadership group,

entrusting its members with key

decisions and authority to enforce

standards and behaviours.

- Developed individual operating units,

hich each player had a speciﬁc

portfolio

esponsibility

eadership

Structured test match weeks so that

responsibility for decision making

gradually evolved from management

towards players; by Saturday the team

was entirely in the hands of the players.

- Created a ‘train to win’ system –

preparing the team under pressure using

randomised problem-solving techniques,

active questioning and high-intensity

training to prepare them for the heat of

the battle.

- Focused on an understanding of how

the brain reacts to stress to provide the

tools to help players stay present,

connected, clear and accurate in order to

make better decisions under pressure.

- Created a ‘learning environment’

dedicated to developing the individual in

a tailored, self-managed programme of

self-improvement.

- Developed techniques, rituals and

language that connected players to the

core; using storytelling to create a sense

of purpose and intention.

// NZ RUGBY WORLD // JUNE/JULY 2015

[

KEVIN ROBERTS

]

KEVIN ROBERTS IS THE EXECUTIVE CHAIRMAN OF SAATCHI & SAATCHI

AND AN ASTUTE OBSERVER OF OUR GREAT GAME.

Will these ideas result in a historic

back-to-back World Cup triumph, or – no

matter how well you execute the basics,

the systems, the disciplines, the

processes – will a moment of genius

(think Jonah versus England in the 1995

semi), of inspiration (think Mandela at

Ellis Park in ’95) or absurdity (take a bow

Wayne Barnes!), decide RWC 2015?

I have just watched the world’s

greatest athlete, the Argentinian

magician Leo Messi, take Pep

Guardiola’s mighty Bayern Munich

machine apart in the ﬁrst leg of the

UEFA Champions League semiﬁnal in

Barcelona.

Will an X-factor Messi-like player win

the trophy for New Zealand? Ben Smith,

Aaron Smith, Julian Savea, Sonny-Bill,

Ma’a Nonu, Kieran Read, Jerome Kaino

or Brodie Retallick – and I still hope and

pray the Great Man – Richie McCaw – is

ﬁt, healthy and good to go.

Or will it be the ‘blue heads’ – the

kickers, the decision-makers, the

unlikely heroes (we’ve had our share)

who do the business?

Or one of our champions in their ﬁnal

farewell who turns back the years and

rediscovers the glory days? (Yes DC, I

mean you.)

My hope? Beauden Barrett comes of

age and rips the top teams apart in the

last three knockout games. Come On.

Will an X-factor Messi-like

player win the trophy for

New Zealand?’

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