Don’t fear the mistakes
Do not be scared of making mistakes. Mistakes happen all the time in every walk of life. It isn’t the mistake that matters; it’s how we react to it that counts. The referee will make mistakes and, whisper it, sometimes even your coaches will be culpable. We all are. How we pick ourselves up and face the next phase of play is the defining factor.
Knocked on? Nae luck, buttercup. But it doesn’t matter. It’s part of the game; make sure the opposition don’t capitalise on your mistake. React well and all the opposition are going to gain is the put-in to the scrum. If you’ve knocked-on, keep going till the ref blows his trumpet and tells you to stop. The Ref may have made a mistake and missed your mistake! Play on. If the oppo gets to the dropped ball before you? – take that frustration that you’ve just felt and unleash it in the tackle, allow them no advantage.
Missed a tackle and conceded a try? Sucks to be you, dude. The only thing you can do is get up. Get up, get on with it and make sure you are in position to make the next hit and then the next. The moment of the mistake has gone, it’s up to you to find it within yourself to react positively and not dwell on what has passed.
Poor kick that hasn’t quite gone where you’d expected? This is where we get instant retribution. You may have heard the old adage there is no such thing as a bad kick, only a bad chase and if you have heard it, it’s because it’s true. The best placed kick in the world, with proper weight, rolling to a stop just short of the touchline which forces the oppo to play it – is only effective if you have players chasing the kick and putting pressure on the oppo. Sclaffed it, sliced it, over hit it, under hit it, hooked it, pulled it, blootered it. It doesn’t matter. Get on your bike, put your teammates onside, and get after the ball. Put the pressure on the opposition. Turn your mistake into your advantage.
I would encourage all players to embrace their mistakes. Smile, shake your head, curse Odin’s raven. Whatever it takes to learn from it, forget it and move on. The next phase of play, the rest of the game, next week’s training is where it counts.
No-one is trying to make a mistake but why do they happen? Most mistakes come from a lack of concentration – a momentary blip that can creep up out of nowhere. Such a blip can draw you out of defensive alignment, can lift your eyes off the ball before it’s nestled in your arms, cause you to misread the flight of the ball or mistime the swing of your boot. You can only improve your concentration through training; by getting fitter to allow your brain to function when it is fatigued. Practice makes you smarter.
Without trying something or pushing the boundaries of our skill we will never know what we are capable of. Throw the risky pass? Is the chip on? Throw an outrageous dummy? Can you pinch an interception? If it doesn’t work then sure, you may hear the boors on the beer on the touchline; but like the mistake we’ve just made, their jeers don’t matter. It’s what you do next that counts. Practice the risky pass. Try the speculative chip. Whatever you want to do – if you see it, try it; have no fear, mistakes can be rectified.
@Kick10Ball
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