Beaten Scots meet sports psychologist
● Players have access to sports psychologist after Wales fiasco as they prepare mentally for recovery mission against France
Scotland players have held an “honesty session” and meetings with a leading sports psychologist in the aftermath of their shattering 34-7 loss to Wales in Cardiff on Saturday.
Centre Peter Horne, who scored the Scots’ scant consolation try at the end of a bruising afternoon at the Principality Stadium, revealed that the squad have held frank talks, both after the match and upon re-entering the camp in Edinburgh this week.
“It’s not easy to sit in a room after something like that. Ideally it’s all sunshine and roses when we’re all delighted after a great win,” said Horne. “It is what it is, you just need to suck it up and get on with it.
“If anything, it’s the first thing you want to do after a game like that. You want to get cracking and start it straight away. You want to put it to bed and make sure you’ve got a good plan and prepare for the next game and make sure it doesn’t happen again. They aren’t easy but you need to be honest with yourself.”
Horne said that players had held one-on-one meetings with the Scotland team’s consultant psychologist Damian Hughes, the author of Liquid Thinking and How To Think Like Alex Ferguson as they prepare for Sunday’s home game against France.
The latest book by Damian Hughes, the sports psychologist who has been consulting with the Scotland rugby team is titled The Five Steps to a Winning Mindset.
In the wake of Saturday’s dismal showing in Cardiff at the weekend, he would have been given an insight into the fact, when it comes to Scottish sport, steps tend to be of the one forward, two back variety.
Hughes, pictured, also wrote a book on the psychology of Sir Alex Ferguson’s management style. Now there is a Scot who did crack the winning code. Ahead of Sunday’s visit of France to BT Murrayfield in what is already looking like a salvage mission, centre Peter Horne revealed that Hughes’ services were being drawn upon by a squad of players left in a state of shock by the 34-7 ravaging by Wales.
“Yes, we have Damian Hughes working with us. He will go around a few of the guys and have a chat. Quite a lot of the boys are open to that,” said the 28-year-old Glasgow centre, whose late consolation try off the bench spared Scotland the ignominy of being nilled.
“It’s nice to chat to Damian. He’s a good lad,” continued Horne. “He doesn’t have massive things with the whole squad. It’s quite individual, catching up with guys.
“A lot of the time he’s just there, chucking in little bits of wisdom about ways of coping with things or dealing with things. It’s more if the boys feel they want to go and have a chat with him; he’s not pushing it in your face, he’s not that type of guy.”
Horne clearly views this as the natural professional approach to modern sport and added: “I’d like to think that everyone is mentally strong enough to know that that game doesn’t make you a bad player. Everyone makes mistakes, everyone has bad games, that’s part and parcel of professional sport.
“You can’t ride the crest of a wave the whole time. There will be times when you fall over. We just have to suck it up, admit we were pretty poor, and make sure it doesn’t happen again.”
That message has also been rammed home in a desolate visiting changing room after the game and when the players returned to camp for what can’t have been the most enjoyable of squad meetings.
“I think it’s a lot easier just holding your own hand up,” said Horne, who could return to the starting line-up on Sunday if his clubmate Alex Dunbar isn’t given the concussion all-clear after Newcastle centre Chris Harris endured a disappointing first Scotland start.
“There is holding people accountable, but at that point straight after a game there is no need for that. Everyone has a good idea of what they’ve done wrong. Someone calling you out in front of everyone is not going to help.
“If someone was dancing around acting Dan the Man then you might potentially point them out, but there was nothing like that in the changing room. Everyone was disappointed, we had a pretty frank discussion and we left it all there.”
The Scots flew straight home on Saturday evening, not much more than 24 hours after they arrived in Wales on a lightning raid which turned out more SOS than SAS.
“We got back to the hotel on Saturday,” said Horne. “We didn’t have anything on Sunday. There was an option to stay at the hotel or drive home. I went back to Glasgow and saw my wife.
“I went back and sat with her for a while. She went to bed and I sat and watched the game again. Sometimes you get a better feel for it on the TV so I was prepped and didn’t have to watch it on the Sunday with her!
“[Glasgow coach] Dave Rennie is big on things like that. Regardless of the result, afterwards you go and spend time with the family and don’t worry about it. You don’t ruin their weekend because you’ve ballsed up the game or whatever.
“It was good that we managed to get away. We had Sunday to ourselves and our families. We came back in on Monday and had a good review, spent a lot of time together. We’re in a good place now and ready to crack on. “We were all gutted. It’s not one where you could just forget it. Playing for your country you’re desperate to do well for yourself, your family, the fans.
“There was a big expectation from everyone inside and outside the group. We felt we blew a big opportunity and it has been a tough one to take.
“It becomes counter-productive to mope around all week. That’s why you have the reviews and honesty sessions. You speak about it and put it to bed and have a plan to go into the next week.”
The shift now focuses on France and what is sure to be another fierce physical onslaught.
“I think they will be looking to exert dominance up front. They are big men so they’ll be looking to pile on the pressure,” said Horne.
“Our boys will expect that challenge and it’s something they will be excited about. When teams talk themselves up in that area it is a great challenge so we are well up for it.
“I’m pretty confident [Wales] was a slip as a I can’t see us being that bad again. I think there will be a good reaction from the boys as we were all pretty devastated and ideally to be playing France immediately after it you are desperate to get another opportunity.
“The 23 boys who are selected this week will be chomping at the bit.
“We are pretty beaten up, we are disappointed and embarrassed by the result and desperate to put things right.”
GOOD TO TALK
“Everyone has a good idea of what they’ve done wrong. Someone calling you out in front of everyone is not going to help”
“We came back in on Monday and had a good review, spent a lot of time together. We’re in a good place now and ready to crack on”
PETER HORNE