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Training in sunglasses, golf simulators, casino nights and a fascination with The Inbetweeners - Gatland and O'Connell trade Lions stories
Lions coach Warren Gatland has revealed the innovations of assistant Robin McBryde that have most caught his eye over the years, adding that he has sounded out the Six Nations teams about what they did in recent months to encourage squad bonding despite the restrictions forced on them by the pandemic.
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Fresh from announcing his four-strong contingent of assistant coaches for the July tour to South Africa, Gatland appeared on the first instalment of Lions Live, the behind the scenes series hosted by David Flatman which aims to keep fans entertained via their Vodafone-powered Lions app.
Having chosen McBryde, Gregor Townsend, Steve Tandy and Neil Jenkins as his lieutenants for the tour, Gatland revealed that his first impression of ex-Wales hooker McBryde was very different from the huge esteem he now holds for the current Leinster assistant, someone he spent a long time working with in Wales.
“When he first arrived in 2007/08 and he had only just finished playing a couple of years earlier, I remember thinking, ‘Oh no, what have I got here?’ Over the last twelve, 13 years he has developed into such an outstanding forwards coach – he is so innovative.
“He does stuff in training like having the music blasting to put the players under pressure, so you would have three or four seconds to make a lineout call with the music blasting, and trying to get guys communicating with headphones on and the hookers wearing sunglasses so they couldn’t see properly. Just different things that bring a bit of enjoyment and fun but also challenging people.”
Catch some rugby greats on Lions Live on the @lionsofficial app, covering everything from how coaches are the glue that holds the team together, to delaying training to watch the Inbetweeners #UniteThePride pic.twitter.com/aftgY6Amsd
— Vodafone UK (@VodafoneUK) April 15, 2021
Fun has always been a massive factor when Lions tours have gone well. Gatland was in South Africa in 2009 as an assistant before becoming head coach for the respective 2013 and 2017 tours in Australia and New Zealand. They were all popular trips due to the way the squad bonded but the freedoms the Lions enjoyed on those tours won’t apply in South Africa and Gatland has sounded out the Six Nations teams about what they did to lighten the mood of the pandemic restrictions in recent months.
“We talked to the other coaches about what they did during the Six Nations in their own bubbles and some of them had golf simulators, they had card nights, casino nights, pool competitions, dart competitions, the Welsh boys had a Mexican night – so they have all be doing lots of different things in their own bubble,” enthused Gatland.
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Ex-Lions skipper and current Ireland forwards coach Paul O’Connell was also on the show with Gatland alongside England’s Emily Scarratt and ex-Lions boss Ian McGeechan.
The famed Irish lock, who believes Owen Farrell should skipper the 2021 tourists, recalled how a fascination with a TV series helped the 2009 squad to gel and come close to beating the Springboks in the series that was lost 2-1.
“One of the highlights for me was The Inbetweeners had just come out and we were delaying training and stuff to watch episodes – the coaches were more into it than the players. I don’t think there is a team you need to be more prepared for than South Africa in terms of tactically what you are going to do.
“You need a real plan of how you are going to beat them on the pitch, but unless there is a bit of glue holding the players together as well it’s not going to count for a whole lot – and those days watching The Inbetweeners in 2009 were great for us.”
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"There are plenty of guys who could do the job, but for me in terms of experience and an appetite to lead, he’s the real standout."https://t.co/dHketFS6Zq
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) April 15, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Big difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
3 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
30 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to commentsAn on field red (aka a full red) in SRP must surely carry a bigger suspension than a red card given by the bunker as that carries a 20 minute team punishment. Had Damon Murphy abdicated his responsibility as a ref and issued both Drua players a yellow, which would have been upgraded to a 20 minute red by the bunker, that would have killed Australia and New Zealand’s push for the 20 minute red to be trialled globally from July this year.
11 Go to commentsEver so often you all post a Danny Care story that isn’t the announcement that he has finally re-signed for one more, victory tour season at Quins and I’m just like, “well you fooled me again!” My absolute favorite player ever, we need to make his final year at the Stoop (and Twickers) official already. I know he supposedly snubbed France but I won’t feel better until he signs.
1 Go to commentslate hit what late hit it wasn’t at all late and can clearly see he was committed before the tackle
1 Go to commentsChristian Lio -Willies 2 try perfomance was a standout. As was captain Scott Barrett. Up front was where the boys won it.They are a great team and players. Fantastic Crusaders , you can keep going.
3 Go to commentsI don't know how the locals feel about that? I guess if you call yourselves the Worcester Wasps that might be appease. But really we need more teams in the Premiership in my view so they are not padding it out as they are at the moment. It might curtail so many players going abroad as well
5 Go to commentsNZ 😭😭😭is certainly rivaling England for best whingers cup!😭😭😭 !!!
30 Go to commentsYup. New Zealand won 3 out of 10 world cups played. SA 4 out of 8 attempts 30 Vs 50 per cent.🤔🤔
30 Go to commentsShould've done this years ago. Change Saturday kick off times to around 11am. Up and off and back home before 3pm, limit travel time too. Allows players to actually do something else with their Saturday that's family oriented or being rugby fans they could ‘watch’ pro rugby. Increases crowds etc. How can anyone that enjoys grassroots and pro rugby have to choose between the two on Saturdays?
9 Go to commentsI bet he inspired those supporters just as much.
1 Go to commentsBen Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
30 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
9 Go to commentsPick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
30 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to comments