Ex-AB writes the book on losing
Rather than feel sorry for himself after his exit from the NSW Waratahs, Daryl Gibson spent a year writing a thesis on how coaches deal with defeats.
Daryl Gibson was exposed to the harsh and unforgiving side of coaching before making an early exit from the Waratahs last year.
Now the ex- All Blacks midfielder hopes his master’s thesis on losing streaks, and how coaches can snap them, will help others in charge of underperforming teams to untangle themselves from a run of poor results.
Last year, Gibson resigned from the Waratahs when the team failed to fire in Super Rugby, having also had to deal with the dramas that blew up after Wallabies star Israel Folau posted homophobic material on social media.
Gibson, having been promoted to Waratahs head coach in 2016 after working as Michael Cheika’s assistant for three years and earlier been on the Crusaders staff for five seasons, departed the Sydney club with a year left on his contract.
One finals appearance in four seasons meant there was heat pouring in from every angle, and Gibson decided he needed to get out.
The 19-test All Black now lives with his family in the Bay of Plenty, and will soon return to coaching as backs coach for Fiji during the Eight Nations tournament in the northern hemisphere.
Gibson, who graduated from Canterbury University with two degrees, specialising in education, during his career with the Crusaders and Canterbury, also focused on getting his teaching certificate back when he returned to New Zealand from Sydney.
As well as spending about a year working on his thesis, which he completed about a month ago, he has worked in several schools in the Bay of Plenty region.
‘‘My passion is coaching and I see teaching as part of that,’’ Gibson, 45, says.
‘‘ I have really loved getting back in the classroom. It took 25 years to qualify as a teacher and to finally get back in the classroom, to get paid for it and teach has rekindled my love for education and how much respect I have for all those people who do it every day.’’
The pressure of analysing the next opponent, formulating a game plan, worrying about injured players while wondering whether the fit ones are in the right head space, was traded for talking to students behind desks.
Then there was his thesis, which appears to have been a therapeutic tool for all parties.
While Gibson wouldn’t divulge who he spoke to, he said he had long conversations with coaches from NRL, AFL and rugby union; discussing how they attempted to dig their way out of a run of losses was ‘‘ fascinating in itself’’, he said.
‘‘I managed to talk to some great coaches in three different codes, so that took up a lot of time during lockdown,’’ Gibson said. ‘‘They were all household names in league, AFL and rugby union. ‘‘ For a lot of the coaches it was like therapy, about talking
‘‘For a lot of the coaches it was like therapy, about talking what they did and the mistakes that were made and what worked and what didn’t.’’
Daryl Gibson
what they did and the mistakes that were made and what worked and what didn’t.’’
Now he hopes the thesis can help other sports coaches find a way to rebound after a team strings together some dud performances.
‘‘ I was incredibly curious about how other coaches had approached it – their experiences. And, certainty, I have got to the stage where I understand it really well. That was part of my motivation – to really inform the coaching community that if you are in it (a losing streak) these are the things other coaches found really effective.’’
Some of those he interviewed were able to turn their season around, while others couldn’t stop the slide. It was contextual, said Gibson.
‘‘I think every coach said that without that experience they wouldn’t be the coach they are today. There were important reflections from all of them.
‘‘They were able to get some things off their chest, and I was grateful for them for opening up. It consumed my time for a year or so.’’
Gibson’s final year at the Waratahs was overshadowed by Folau’s controversial views on the rainbow community, which resulted in him getting stood down and was followed by a legal fight with Rugby Australia.
Amid all the turmoil Gibson tried to keep the Waratahs on the rails but when they finished 12th, with just 6 wins from 16 games last year, he knew it was time to go.
‘‘ It was definitely emotional. From my experience and the streaks I have had in the final year at the Waratahs, and with the Israel (Folau) situation, it certainly took an emotional toll on everyone involved.
‘‘ But you take those experiences with you. There are the good times and there are the rough times. It is all part of it.’’
Time heals wounds, and the passion for coaching has been reignited.
Vern Cotter, who was appointed Fiji head coach after the World Cup in Japan, and Gibson had conversations about rugby which evolved into the latter being offered a role.
‘‘We live about 20 minutes away from Vern, and we just got chatting about that opportunity that was coming up and the coaching team he was looking to put together,’’ Gibson said.
‘‘And it really fitted me. A couple of months’ work, and it would be really exciting to get involved in international rugby. It was something I was really keen to do after 11 seasons of coaching in Super Rugby.’’
Cotter has also recruited Crusaders forwards coach Jason Ryan, former Chiefs playmaker and international referee Glenn Jackson and breakdown specialist Richie Gray.
Gibson will leave New Zealand on October 24 as Fiji will base itself in France to prepare for the Eight Nations, and is confident he has rediscovered his hunger for being involved in a team again.
‘‘Just having time away from the game to reflect on things and then to rekindle the love again for what we do as coaches.’’