Answer me this question…
Would you rather watch your team play on gameday, or coach them?
Have your answer yet?
One of the best coaches in sports right now might surprise you with his answer.
And mine is the same.
The Man
Jesse Marsch is an American-born soccer coach who recently took the job at RB Leipzig after stops in Salzburg, Leipzig as an assistant, New York, Montreal, Princeton, and Northwestern.
One thing we have in common…
We’d rather watch our teams play on gameday than “coach” them.
Don’t leave yet, hear our argument…
Here’s what Marsch said on a podcast that might surprise you:
When I first go to teams, one of the first things I say to them is that my job is to engage all of you in a way to commit to the project fully and understand the plan from every perspective fully. So that when I show up that day, I put the cones down, I tell you what the rules are, make the teams and you guys train and take it over from there. And when we go to a game that I make the tactical plan, I give the strategy and then you guys go and implement it every way you can. And then I tell them that what I want to do is I just want to sit on the bench. I just want to sit right there and I want to watch the game like a fan. And then when you score I want to say “good job.”
Read the boldface text again.
One of two things is happening right now…
You’re smiling from ear to ear that someone at the highest level “gets it.”
Or…
You’re steaming mad that he doesn’t like to “coach” during the match.
Why I Love What He Said…
One college football coach said this:
“After practice on Friday, the hay is in the barn.”
You’re not going to teach them anything new on game day.
And I agree.
My girlfriend would come to games and sit with the parents and fans when I was coaching junior hockey. She had expectations of what coaches “look like” on gameday and so did the parents.
Apparently, there was a lot of talk that, “he doesn’t really look like he’s coaching.”
She heard it all too often from the parents and one day she asked me why it doesn’t look like I’m coaching on gameday…
I’m in Jesse Marsch’s camp as well as the Texas college coach.
“What am I going to teach them on game day?”
Was my response to her.
We prepare all week, if they don’t have it by Thursday after practice it’s not going to make much sense to try and beat it into their head before or during the game on the weekend.
Hockey is hard enough to play and you need all of your working memory available to you. Pointing out to a player that what you taught them all week isn’t transferring isn’t going to do them much good.
I stand there with my game card. I take notes.
I observe.
I give gentle reminders and use phrases I have encoded into their memory so it’s quick and easy for them to remind themself. I guide the energy so it doesn’t get too high or too low. (to the best of my ability)
I’m in the moment of the game.
It’s counter-culture but it’s what I believe in. I used to think I was alone. It’s good to know that other coaches are coming around to other ideas about “gameday coaching.”
Questions
How does your gameday teaching/coaching compare to practice days?
What are the benefits to the way you do it currently?
What are the drawbacks?
How can you make one slight adjustment to get better today?
The Rabbit Hole on Jesse
This thread has an article and a few podcasts:
Added thoughts in this Twitter thread:
Love the part about not coaching much during the game. It's like trying to study at the same time as taking an exam. It's too late for that.