Bears chief Lam looks to avoid another stuttering start
PAT LAM is making sure that Bristol hit the ground running next season by arranging three warm-up matches, admitting they went into the current campaign short of a gallop.
The Bears lost their opening Premiership match at home to Saracens and were then heavily beaten at Wasps. It set the tone for a season which never got going and they finished 10th in the Premiership, failing to qualify for the Heineken Champions Cup.
“The review of the season started with me and looking at everything that had been done,” said Lam, the Bears’ director of rugby. “We went into the season having played just one friendly because we felt that trying to arrange fixtures would have been difficult due to Covid, but our pre-season is already locked and loaded for the players return on July 4.
“You learn more from losing than winning because adversity reveals a lot. We will play three matches before the start of the season: Brive in France ahead of trips to the Dragons and the Scarlets.
“An issue last season was that we did not hit the ground running and that will not happen again with three big games already arranged. It is one example of changes we are making. The players have four weeks off and will train for four weeks when they come back. They will then have more time off before coming back for another four weeks which will take in the three matches.
“We have had the time to reflect and regroup and I am excited about what we are going to put in place going forward. The season
was disappointing in terms of results, but it forced us to review everything.
“We have made huge progress in the last five years and this is a checkpoint. Everyone looks at the end result, but I focus on moments and there was growth this season.”
Lam is a student of other sports and has been watching the documentary Man in the Arena which looks at the long and successful career of the American Football quarterback Tom Brady.
“I love learning from the different competitions in rugby and other sports,” said Lam. “You get a sense of the importance of teams and communication and it reinforces the significance of professionalism. Not in the sense of getting paid but in having the mindset to work together and be the best.
“This season is history and a reason I love history is that it tells you where you have come from and what you can learn, but it is the vision that determines your journey.”
Lam continued: “What we have learned from Covid is to have perspective about what is important. When you have been through tough times you realise that some of the things you worry about are not that big. I like pressure in a team environment because you see how people react.”