St George beat Parramatta last night, and once again, Wayne Bennett only used fifteen men. Perhaps a deliberate plan to solidify the mental toughness of his team. By making them see that they can compete with other teams with fewer players, thus helping them to believe in themselves and build their confidence. See, mental toughness is all about believing in what you are trying to achieve. If you are are confident, then you will be able to handle the pressure. Alot is said about top sportspeople needing to be arrogant. No, they don't. Arrogance comes from a lack of self belief and lack of confidence. Confidence comes from believing in what you are trying to achieve, thus making you mentally tough, ergo, you will be more likely to achieve whatever it is you are aiming for.. Wayne Bennett is very cleverly instilling in his players that confidence needed to consistently compete with the best each week.
Another point to do with St George. Now, I have nothing against Nathan Brown, and i do not mean this as an attack on him. He is a most capable coach and was a good player as well. I only wish to use his case as an example to make a point. He was replaced by Wayne Bennett, which was the St Georges boards perogative. However, and this applies to alot of different fields in life, wouldn't it have been a great oppurtunity to for someone to learn from one of the great coaches of all time, as an assistant coach. I can understand someone like Brown not wishing to go back to an assistants position, both in terms of monetary benefits, as well as wanting to be in the top job. However, sometimes in life, is there not times when one can learn from the best and taking one step backwards can eventually mean taking two steps forward. It can apply to all of us at times. Just a thought.
Melbourne are tonight playing Penrith in Melbourne and i expect that Melbourne will win this encounter. This was once a feared trip for any team in the NRL, but Melbourne now seems to have lost the aura of invincibility that it once held over opponents in Melbourne. Could it be that the Warriors busrt the Storms bubble somewhat, when they beat the Storm there in the first round of the finals series at the end of last season?