Scotland chief It’s easier to work with guys
Shelley Kerr claimed the close bonds formed by women in the same team makes them harder to direct than males.
And she revealed that while female athletes ask more questions than men, the relationships formed between the players makes it more difficult to instigate changes.
Former Scotland captain Shelley, 50, said: “There is a difference first and foremost from coaching and managing. Women – in my experience – are more receptive to coaching.
“They will ask you a million questions when they are doing it – why they are doing it, what they are doing it for, they want to know the outcome, they want clarity – and I think that’s dif ferent from men.
“Whereas managing women and men, I think men are a little bit easier. And the reason why? I think in ‘team sport’ in particular, when you make decisions, because there is such cohesion within female team sport, it can affect dynamics.
“So when you make a decision, it probably affects more than that one individual. It affects two, three, four, five and then it can impact team dynamics.
“That’s just my experience and I can only give you my views in terms of the experiences I have had in working with both.”
Shelley, who was appointed as head coach of the women’s national team in April 2017, made history last year by taking Scotland to its first women’s football world cup.
Before her appointment as Scotland boss, she was the first female manager of a men’s team in Scotland when she took the reigns of Stirling University’s Lowland Football League team.
She made the comments on the BBC Sounds sports podcast Fair Play, presented by Heather Dewar.