Sporting News Australia
Lessons for all in Sylvia’s demise
Ricky Nixon | 14 May 2015,
Even without knowing the whole story we are quick to condemn players for failing to meet our expectations.
Australia was once a country of “get up and have a go”—now it’s the country of “get up and have a go at someone”.
With the development of social media everyone these days is an expert on AFL yet very few have the inner knowledge of what makes a player tick when it comes to commenting on their full career. To hear of Colin Sylvia’s retirement from AFL football a couple of weeks ago hardly surprised me.
To see the “social media experts” canning him and for that matter the ex players on Media Street shows the ignorance they have in understanding that not everyone is capable of reaching their maximum.
I managed Colin when he was first drafted and was on the record as saying he had the ability to be the next Michael Voss.
Two facts have emerged since he was drafted. Firstly he showed (in rare glimpses) the ability of Voss.
Secondly he will forever be seen as some sort of failure because of the expectations of the masses.
Colin left my management for greener pastures early in his career. Something that happened with very few players but one that I noted was usually a sign of another player agent telling them they are a lot better player than what their contract reflected, and even more notable that they didn’t accept both the club’s and my appraisal of where they were at with their career.
Yes, he might have failed to reach dizzy heights of Michael Voss but trust me I recognised by year two of his career that his character and nature would mean he would more than likely not reach his potential.
Colin was a confident happy-go-lucky sort of person who had so much natural ability that his mind told him he didn’t need to do the hard work to be the star.
Too often as a junior footballer you do as you please against inferior opposition, which gives you a false sense of confidence once you come up against the big boys in the AFL. Colin is also the victim of the athletic event the AFL has now become.
He didn’t have the hunger or motivation to be the fittest he could be and to get his body to an elite athletic level to play midfield or high half forward.
Good management is about knowing that every player is different and you need different approaches to get the best out of them.
Secondly you need to know what level they will go to in order to thrive, not just survive, at AFL level.
Gary Ablett Snr, who I managed for 10 years, was often the subject of commentary about his inconsistency. I was guilty myself of sometimes questioning how he went about preparation for games and his attitude in games.
This of course was covered up by his freakish skills and the fact he kicked 14 goals three times in home and away games says it all.
One day Gary asked me to go fishing with him. He said something to me that day that I will never forget and changed my view on management of players forever.
He said: “Rick have you ever thought I don’t want to be what everyone else wants me to be?”
I was a bit stunned, then realised that Gary just wanted to play football, he didn’t want to be on The Footy Show or endorsing Adidas, or doing a radio interview.
It was on that fishing trip that I adopted a very different approach whereby I accepted Gary as Gary.
After that he and I formed a great partnership. I worked with what I had and planned his life around his strengths and weaknesses.
I made sure the positives made up most of each day and that negatives were dealt as much as possible behind closed doors, face to face.
That fishing trip also became the turning point for some young players’ careers when I felt they needed a left-field approach to get to the top, and if I had managed Sylvia at 22 I would have done the following:
I would ask him to come and see me.
Not go chase him all over the planet. If he truly wants to be the best then he will make the effort.
I would ask which day or half day he has off from training and to come fishing with me.
I would insist that we both leave our mobile phones at home.
When we were out fishing I would ask him if he could swim. If he said yes I would ask him how far he could swim.
If he said 500 metres I would take the boat 1km off shore. I’d then stop the engines and ask him what he would do if I pushed him overboard?
I’m not going to exactly disclose all of my IP here that has worked when resurrecting many sporting careers over 20 years but let’s just say that by the time we got back to shore I think he would understand what management is about.
I would use words to the effect “If I push you overboard this far from shore, what would you do? Would you do what it takes to survive? Could you push through? Would you survive?”
And yes I have actually pushed some players overboard to see how they handled the challenge of life and death.
Any yes they said, “Why the f— did you do that?” But every one respected the lesson.
(Some didn’t appreciate the ride back to shore without a towel. God, kids these days are soft!)
Then I would ask Sylvia to see me again the next day, or on some occasions this happened in the car park at St Kilda Marina. I would explain that management is about:
– Understanding your client
– Challenging them
– Having mutual respect and belief in each other
– Kicking their bum and slapping their back when appropriate
– Being there with a hand when they are drowning
– Helping them to find a way to win when they are gulping for air
– Setting goals based on their ability
– Using their personality as a weapon not as a hindrance to achievement
– Setting a long-term vision
– Educating that sport and life is about team. Getting the best team together that can assist with strengths and weaknesses.
One of the problems with today’s management of AFL players is that they are being managed by agents of a similar age or not much older.
These agents in some cases lack the worldly experiences needed to get the best out of their clients and this problem will continue indefinitely because the AFLPA keeps accrediting agents on the back of an examination of AFL rules with no education or training.
I believe you can only be critical of a player whose career doesn’t reach the predicted dizzy heights if he has refused to listen and refused to try.
Is that Colin Sylvia?
Only Colin knows the answer to that but, guess what, Colin may also have decided AFL isn’t for him and it’s best to stop wasting everyone’s time and walk away.
Either way I wish him the best. He had a crack and he now has lots of footy at another level to play (and enjoy) and a long life to live.
Ricky Nixon’s take on AFL #ChickenGoesBANG Mondays and Fridays 6pm Sporting News Australia
Contact Ricky Nixon via info@rickynixon.com.au
Twitter: @rickynixon19
Ricky Nixon 