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Posted by
Paul James
July 14, 2011 |
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Ten Books That Screwed up the World and Five others that didn’t Help, ruthlessly exposes the absurdity of some of the worlds’ most destructive books. The opening chapter is a damning critique of a manuscript which is mandatory reading for most first year political science students. The name of the referenced book in this first chapter is The Prince whose thesis, encapsulated, espouses that good is bad while bad is good. Expanded, it promotes honesty as being naïve, cutting corners as being smart, while being sly, undermining, and two faced is encouraged as rational modus operandi. The ethos of Politics!
Too many soccer people in Canada are in their positions because of politics not merit. And it pervades every level of our game in this country. Starting with the media, extending to our governing body at the Canadian Soccer Association, filtering down through our minor soccer clubs, branching out to our provincial associations and now, as Major League Soccer enters our country, to our professional teams. And the problem with this debilitating political landscape is that it cultivates ignorance, selfishness, jealousy and immaturity in a soccer industry that oh so desperately requires intellect and responsibility.
Not that our whole industry is influenced by this unsavoury aspect of our soccer culture.
Gerry Dobson from Sportsnet and James Sharman from The Score are shining examples of some of the positive media contributions to our industry. Or how about Paul Attfield at the Globe and Mail and Matthew Scianetti at the National Post two up and coming soccer writers for our national newspapers. Or Noel Butler in Montreal with his informative and entertaining radio show. How about the ever reliable, intelligent, and classy Neil Davidson, at the Canadian Press? A journeyman if ever there was one. And how about the Globe’s Stephen Brunt from mainstream sports media reporting on our industry insightfully and with no particular agenda except identifying some truths.
The CSA’s General Secretary Peter Montopoli appears to be a move forward for the Canadian Soccer Association, as he attacks some of the important issues in a rational, intelligent, and when necessary, tough manner. And from coast to coast it would be unfair to not recognize some of the important work a good many people have contributed to the development of the game in this country. From Bijorn Osieck, the son of the unfairly maligned Holger Osieck, working at BC Soccer to the veteran administrator Bruce Henderson at the Ontario Soccer Association to Dragan Mirkovic tirelessly working as a coach for Newfoundland and Labrador, they are just a few of the people who have contributed over the years to the wellbeing of an awkward soccer nation. And let’s not forget the selflessness of Richard Howes who provides an avenue for so many writers to promote their work via the BC soccer web and pretty much for nothing.
Of course it would be remiss to not acknowledge the outstanding performance and development of our referees with the CSA’s talented Joe Guest being the architect of some outstanding development which was capped off by Carol Anne Chenard’s performance in yesterday’s Women’s World Cup quarter-final between Japan and Sweden. To Joe and Carol Anne we certainly tip our hats to you with so much pride.
Unfortunately though, these people appear in a minority group as the politically inclined still rule the landscape within the Canadian soccer industry. And it is our number one problem to solve.
If an organization hires its people and especially its leaders based on politics then they achieve three important milestones. Firstly, they miss out on more talented people; secondly they generally hire insecure individuals who protect their stalls by surrounding themselves with people of similar or lesser ability; and thirdly they guarantee sustained failure in some form or manifestation, a result of the limited experience, knowhow, and the undesirable individual traits they have hired.
A minor soccer club somewhere in Canada recently advertised for a Technical Director with the minimum requirements of a B Licence coaching certification and a proven track record of coaching. They then hired a person without the licence and with no coaching experience. To counter the lack of experience of their new recruit they formed a new Manager of Coaching position realistically deeming the Technical Director position redundant, yet it is still very much alive as a watered down version of the required work ethic. In the power game it is only a fool that works hard but in the real world it is a selfish approach because the ultimate recipient of benefit is not Canadian soccer but the Technical Director. Cutting corners, at an important position of leadership and influence, brutal politics, in a country which can ill afford it.
The miserable performance of our women’s World Cup team in Germany has channelled more criticism, be it overt or subtle on Even Pellerud who very successfully coached Canada from 2000-2008, than it has on Carolina Morace our current World Cup women’s coach. Yet the Canadian Soccer Association gave Morace more preparation money in two years than Pellerud was given in all of his eight years combined. Canada finishes in last place at the 2011 FIFA World Cup in Germany when a mere three years earlier they finished fifth in the world at the Beijing Olympics under Pellerud. Pervasive ignorance!
The subsequent critiques from the most influential soccer sources were off-the-mark or political – take your pick – reflecting again how far behind we really are as a soccer nation. CBC’s Clare Rustad and Jason Devos at the conclusion of Canada’s humbling 1-0 loss to Nigeria, ironically on the heels of an excellent pointed interview by CBC’s Brenda Irving on Morace, painfully refused to criticize the coach and instead patronizingly deferred to the age old crutch of our country’s systemic flaws. For starters what does systemic flaws, have to do with Morace’s performance as a coach in Germany? Nothing!
Carolina Morace has quite rightly been credited with leading our women’s team to a CONCACAF championship. She should be admired as a female leader who has the fortitude to lead a women’s World Cup soccer team in the first place. And she has grabbed attention for her stance on females being coaches of all female teams, as naïve as that is in the short term.
Now in turn, Morace should be held accountable for the teams’ dismal performance in Germany. A coaches’ job is to maximize the potential of the players they have at their disposal with some empathy given for the circumstances they are presented with. Significant amounts of money were channelled into the preparations, Canadian players have an abundance of international experience, 90 percent of the players have had the benefit of development in the most sophisticated of all women’s development models, the NCAA collegiate system, and Canada was at the forefront of the global evolution of the women’s game back in the early 90’s.
Morace should receive no empathy or sympathy here.
In the opening game against Germany the decision to play Marie-Eve Nault was an error. Replacing Kyle with Parker at half-time did not work out. Against France the team looked unprepared tactically, were naïve in their build-up play and physically could not keep up with the pace of the game. Against Nigeria, among other issues, it looked as if the players had tacitly lost faith in their coach or vice-versa. It should now alert us to the failure of our women’s U20 team to qualify for their own world championships eighteen months ago. Morace led that team to misery after Canada had won the 2008 U20 CONCACAF championship when the impressive Bob Birarda, under Pellerud’s stewardship, was at the helm.
In addition, Morace should be questioned for her tactics (forgive the pun) of gaining financial support for the women’s program by putting a metaphorical gun to the head of the governing body. To do so was as brave as it was stupid. You simply have to win when you use such an approach.
On this count alone many would say she should be fired.
So how does Canada begin to change how it operates in a competitive soccer world we struggle to keep up with?
It should begin with setting standards for how the industry operates. The Canadian Soccer Association as an example, when looking to hire or fire Canadian national team coaches should outsource this responsibility to a consultancy committee. And this committee should be made up of, exclusively, former high level coaches who possess the intellect and character as a result of their own significant achievements. The days of players being on committees or non-experienced personnel making decisions on the most crucial of our national association hiring’s should be a thing of the past.
Standards for hiring at all levels of the game in this country should meet set requirements with no deviations. Then minor soccer clubs will not be able to hire non-qualified people for such important positions of leadership.
Only when the game begins to hire its personnel based on a character ethic will it begin to move forward. But judging character is not so easy and so penetrating this reality with the right personnel will not be as straightforward as it appears. But it has to be achieved otherwise we realistically will remain second best. Or should we say fourth or fifth best?
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