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Mitch content ruling the wild west
By MARC HINTON - RugbyHeaven.co.nz | Sunday, 23 March 2008
For those sitting in the vicinity of the coaches' box at North Harbour Stadium last Saturday evening, the air turned blue during the first 40 minutes of the Super 14 match involving the visiting Western Force against the Blues. Invective spewed forth with such audible quality that the faint of heart may have been tempted to cover their ears.
It was, perhaps, also an insight into life as a rugby coach. So detached from the action, yet so wired to the performance. A colleague described it as one part frustration, another part instruction. The expletives may have been laced among the commands barked into his communication device, but there was also no doubting the passion from whence it all came.
Now, some days removed from the heat of the battle, John Mitchell is slightly sheepish when reminded about his rather dramatic performance in the Force's eventual 27-17 victory over the Blues. To be fair, the alignment of the coaches' box at North Harbour, open-topped and right behind those prying ears of the press contingent, doesn't quite afford the privacy that might be de rigueur elsewhere.
But in many ways that 40 minutes of pure, unadulterated passion sums up Mitchell the coach. He cares about what he does, and he lives the game his men are playing out.
And heaven help them when they get it wrong, as they did for the opening stanza of what turned into a tour de force for the fellows from Perth.
"Some days you say very little, other days you do," he shrugs as we chat at the Force hotel in Auckland, before they de-camp to Queenstown for yesterday's southern assignment against the Highlanders. "If you're not getting the rub of the green through your own attitude and actions, you've got to look for a way to shift the performance. I just thought something needed addressing. Also, you're oblivious to people around you."
Mitchell concedes he's a "straight to the point" coach, but there is method to his madness. Adjustments needed to be made as the Force were struggling against a Blues side who led 17-7 at the break.
The evidence suggests the coach's message got across loud and clear: the Australians scored 20 unanswered points to secure their first ever victory on New Zealand soil. "It wasn't frustration, it was more specifics," said Mitchell of his halftime spiel.
"I wouldn't think the communication was emotional – it was pretty black and white. That's the way I am, the way I always will be. If you can get that [recognition] from the player group at halftime, great, but sometimes they don't have it, so you've got to go there."
In many ways it's a great shame this mix of passion and precision has now been lost to the New Zealand game. While the current focus may be very much on the brain drain that has seen Warren Gatland and Robbie Deans depart to high-profile international posts, Mitchell was the forerunner of this offshore drift.
He was, of course, the All Blacks coach from 2001-03, his reign terminated with defeat in the World Cup semifinal against the Wallabies in Sydney. The irony hasn't been lost on him that he was a dead man walking from the moment his side went down at the Olympic Stadium, yet four years on his successor was gleefully reinstated after he suffered a far more ignominious exit. (Much has been made of Graham Henry's winning percentage overall, but Mitchell's record was almost identical.)
He's loath to reignite that debate, though read what you will from this comment: "I guess there was a form of contradiction there. The decision-makers have got to live by their decisions. We are a small country, and we only have six [top] head coaching jobs available, and a lot of good coaching talent here. Not everyone can fit in, a lot of it's timing, and so often it comes down to relationships."
Clearly Mitchell's face no longer fitted at the New Zealand Rugby Union. Certainly not like Graham Henry's seems to. To be fair to them, he was a prickly sort during his time in charge of the All Blacks and his single- mindedness came at a cost concerning his relationship with the media, his sponsors and employers. He paid for that by being sent to Coventry, or the equivalent thereof, coaching Waikato in the NPC.
Much as with Deans, when he was given the brush-off by the NZRU this year, it didn't take long for the Australians to pounce. The fledgling Force franchise, in the rugby backwater of Western Australia, saw him as an ideal coach to build this team from the ground up.
There is only one conclusion to be drawn on the success of his venture in the wild west. Their debut year (2006) the new chums finished last, with a solitary victory. Within 12 months they had climbed to mid-table respectability, seventh with six wins and a draw. This year they've now beaten the Cheetahs, Lions and Blues all on the road and Blues coach David Nucifora reckons they're the best of the Aussie bunch.
It's why Mitchell keeps the emotions in check when reflecting on the historic victory over the Blues last week. He talks about the "evolution" of the Force and the process of their physical and mental maturation into a quality rugby team. But he's not stressed about when the next breakthrough comes.
"It will happen when it's deserving," he says of the step into playoff football. "I don't know when that's going to be. I don't think this side's realised its capabilities yet. We've still got a lot of young guys and we'll never get any credit from the eastern states. That's just a fact of life."
In fact, Mitchell isn't sure the Force get a fair shake from anyone else in Australia ("I think Australian rugby is probably more territorial than New Zealand rugby in a lot of ways") but he says the organisation has reached a phase that's giving him a lot of satisfaction as a coach.
"I've been privileged to get this opportunity. It's given me new skill sets, and it's opened my eyes to another sporting world. Australians have great spirit, they probably have a greater respect for coaching experience, and generally [somewhere] in Australian sport there's a world champion so there's something to aspire to as a benchmark. That's great to live amongst."
Sure there have been off-field issues for the Force, most of them involving the recalcitrant Matt Henjak (no longer with the organisation). Mitchell acknowledges there have been growing pains and that it's taken some individuals a while to realise the standards they're expected to operate under.
He's also typically forthright on topical subjects. He supports John O'Neill's master plan to expand Super 14 rugby. "We need more content to create more revenue and to sustain the fan for a longer period," he says.
As for the rejection of Deans by the NZRU, he chooses his words carefully. "Clearly there is politics in this position. I'm not sure how much process was involved in that decision. There's a group of people who want to stay in the job for a lot longer, and unfortunately that's isolated the ability of one person who's proven time and again he can create a really good environment."
But Mitchell warns his one-time All Blacks assistant has his work cut out with the Wallabies. "It won't just happen overnight. He's coming to a different culture, to a different rugby mindset, but Robbie's always been keen to listen, and he'll surround himself with good support, and ask a lot of questions. He'll create a greater accountability too."
Does he see himself returning, either to New Zealand rugby or the international game?
"You never say never, but I'm not sure I want to coach internationally again. There's something inside that makes you want to aspire to the highest level, but I really enjoy the ability to develop people over seven months.
"I'm very happy where I'm living. Sometimes you find a place where lifestyle and time with the family is more important. My children are at a critical age in teenage life. Regardless of where the Force take me, I've found a place I really like living."
And where he's pretty driven to achieve success.
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