How Nola could save the Bulls
In the world of All Black rugby, it’s known as whānau. At its most basic, this Māori word represents the feeling of extended family or community, of coming together for one cause. At Loftus Versfeld in Pretoria, it’s known as Tannie Nola. Before the Vodacom Blue Bulls’ 2017 Currie Cup game against the Griquas, Tannie Nola – who runs the ticket office at Loftus Versfeld – was asked to hand out the jerseys to the Bulls players. At face value, it appeared a sentimental gesture. But in the coaching manual, it was sheer genius.
“The biggest thing about the Bulls is the feeling of family here,” says hooker Edgar Marutlulle. New coach John Mitchell’s ability to harness this and make it an effective part of his plan at the Vodacom Bulls will be one of the key pillars of his success in rebuilding this team.
Mitchell comes armed with the best coaching strategies in the game, and he has already implemented a number of these at Loftus Versfeld. He has also spoken extensively to the topic of his personal growth – gone is the man embroiled in controversial tenures.
Team culture is often seen as the final frontier for coaches, in rugby especially. As sport scientist Professor Tim Noakes describes the challenge facing a coach, “In my opinion, the greatest challenge is to produce the successful cohesion of a team of disparate individuals.” Or as they say in the business world, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.”
Under Graham Henry, New Zealand’s All Blacks had the famous mantra of, “Better people make better All Blacks.” Mitchell would most likely ascribe to the more updated version of this, “Better players make better All Blacks.” Having coached at the highest level for many years now, Mitchell has made his mistakes and learned from them. He admits that his coaching approach today is decidedly different from what it has been in the past.
The modern coach cannot afford to coach down to the modern player. He has to make him part of the process. After leading India to Cricket World Cup glory and South Africa to number one Test status, Gary Kirsten summed up his coaching philosophy as, “I always remember that I’m dealing with human beings, not performance tools. If you treat them like performance tools, then you will get the highs and lows of performance and there are no guarantees there. But if you treat them like human beings where you encapsulate them holistically into your programme, and you create an environment where they can bring their whole life to work, then you get a motivated individual who comes to work wanting to give his best. Everybody wants performance, but the modern player wants a voice too.”
At Loftus that voice.
The culture at Loftus Versfeld has always been about a feeling of family amongst the players. Heyneke Meyer perfected it in much the same way the All Blacks did – by creating Versfeld, #Bullsfamily is a core group of senior players in his team and then using them to inculcate a sense of family. It’s no surprise then that when their major sponsor, Vodacom, was looking for ideas of how to reward their top clients, the concept they chose for the Bulls was a Father and Son Sleepout on the field at Loftus Versfeld under the #Bullsfamily campaign.
It was an event that resonated with fullback Warrick Gelant, who grew up without a father. “It’s what we’re looking for as a team, that family bond. We know that’s what we need to take this team and this union forward again.”
Mitchell has and will continue to bring many things to the Bulls table, including strategy, skills, fitness, and a myriad initiatives at the cutting edge of global rugby. But at the highest level of professional team sport, when there is often little to separate teams in the talent and skill stakes, the edge often comes in by making your players realise what else they’re playing for. And that is exactly where Tannie Nola could be the most dangerous weapon the Bulls deploy this Vodacom Super Rugby season.