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'We need to start prioritising players mental well-being'

Chelsea Alley of New Zealand looks dejected after their side concedes a fifth try during the Autumn International match between England Red Roses and New Zealand at Sandy Park on October 31, 2021 in Exeter, England. (Photo by Catherine Ivill - RFU/The RFU Collection via Getty Images )

One of the areas we don’t tap into within women’s rugby, in my experience, is sport psychology. If a player has strong mental resilience, it can only serve to increase their on-pitch performance.

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Often clubs do have strategies in place, but as far as I can see there is no overarching league wide strategy which seeks to improve and maintain a player’s mental wellbeing.

We have to consider that at the elite level of this sport, especially in the Allianz Premier 15s at the moment, players are attempting to succeed in so many different areas of their life. Often without the right help things like burn out, depression and anxiety are inevitable.

Some of the rugby greats have attributed strong mental skills to their on-pitch success, the All-Blacks team for example regard mental skills as a basic necessity within their training sessions. The mental health side of things is taken just as seriously as players physical health, which is something we should be taking note of.

I distinctively remember working with sports psychologist Clare Sadler throughout my time playing sevens. I’ll never forget the impact, after just one individual session, that she had on me. I think every single player in the team broke down after just one conversation, it provoked some powerful feelings and made us see each other in a whole new light.

It’s not just at a domestic level that we could see these changes benefiting players. If we look at where the Red Roses are at now, having just come off a serious high beating the world champions, I do wonder what the next level will hold for the team, and how they can get there. I would be curious to know what difference a dedicated mental skills coach would have for the team, and if it could go some way to unlocking a new performance level for the team as a whole.

As an elite level sports woman, it is difficult to know who to turn to. I wouldn’t want to go directly to my coach, for fear of not being selected, but I also wouldn’t feel comfortable confiding in teammates either. Unfortunately, it’s often those closest to us outside of rugby circles who bare the brunt of our emotions and are responsible for recognising we need some extra support.

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Wouldn’t it be great to have this help and support already readily available to players? Rugby is a career, and there are certain things that come with the job that need to be given attention. The pressure can sometimes become unbearable and it’s not uncommon for players to cease playing due to a lack of wellbeing support.

In my eyes, I want to see mental strengthening as a core and purposeful part of the programme, it should be taken just as seriously as strength and conditioning training. We work so hard as players to build on our physical strength, each exercise is meticulously planned to ensure we give an optimum performance, why are we not doing the same for our minds?

Ultimately, I want to see procedures and steps put in place now, to prevent us having to pick up ill mental health when it is in crisis point. This starts with acknowledging the issues, and the potential solutions to this.

In the rugby community we have seen companies like Loose Headz and Brave Mind do great work with education and understanding around mental health, but this is just the first step. We now need to move into a period where we have an overarching system in place.

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There should, as the minimum standard, be some form of collective standard to which clubs have to adhere to. We should be working collaboratively within the rugby community to put strategies in place to prevent players developing mental health issues in the first place. This isn’t just about mental health, but more about a player’s overall wellbeing.

Also, we need to be shifting the responsibility away from players themselves, and onto the system they are in. That’s not to say players don’t have partial responsibility for seeking help when they need it, but how can they do this when at present there is no clear steps in place to allow this to happen?

Mental health as a phrase often gets a bad reputation, it’s a word that still to this day carries a large amount of stigma with it, and that often creates barriers to having difficult conversations. You can have the best facilities, the best training plan and access to top level coaches, but if you don’t fix what’s going on in your head, you’ll never be able to be as good a player as you possibly could be. We need to start re-framing mental wellbeing as an essential element in training, no matter what level you are playing at, grassroots or elite.

Within rugby, you are conditioned to be confident and strong at all times, on and off pitch. But we need to be realistic here in our expectations, this can only happen when players are given access to the right support which they need to excel in all areas of their career.

This piece is not intended to be a dig at anyone or any organisation. Instead, I want it to serve as a conversation starter in the area, to provoke discussions around how much emphasis we are putting on prioritising players mental well-being at the moment.

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Trevor 2 hours ago
Will forgotten Wallabies fit the Joe Schmidt model?

Thanks Brett.. At last a positive article on the potential of Wallaby candidates, great to read. Schmidt’s record as an international rugby coach speaks for itself, I’m somewhat confident he will turn the Wallaby’s fortunes around …. on the field. It will be up to others to steady the ship off the paddock. But is there a flaw in my optimism? We have known all along that Australia has the players to be very competitive with their international rivals. We know that because everyone keeps telling us. So why the poor results? A question that requires a definitive answer before the turn around can occur. Joe Schmidt signed on for 2 years, time to encompass the Lions tour of 2025. By all accounts he puts family first and that’s fair enough, but I would wager that his 2 year contract will be extended if the next 18 months or so shows the statement “Australia has the players” proves to be correct. The new coach does not have a lot of time to meld together an outfit that will be competitive in the Rugby Championship - it will be interesting to see what happens. It will be interesting to see what happens with Giteau law, the new Wallaby coach has already verbalised that he would to prefer to select from those who play their rugby in Australia. His first test in charge is in July just over 3 months away .. not a long time. I for one wish him well .. heaven knows Australia needs some positive vibes.

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Bull Shark 6 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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