Author and leadership expert Leroy Eimes once said: “A leader is one who sees more than others see, who sees farther than others see, and who sees before others see.”
No doubt those are the qualities that make outstanding sports captains. They are men who can lead and motivate their troops while always being one step ahead of everyone else.
But with the changing leadership landscape in the AFL, is it even worth naming a club captain these days? Is it necessary to appoint one man to the throne when so much emphasis is placed on leadership groups and team decisions?
Before North Melbourne announced Andrew Swallow as its captain for 2012 last week, The Herald Sun asked club legend Glenn Archer for his opinion on who should captain the Kangaroos this season.
His response was, well, interesting: “I don’t really care who is captain. At the end of the day, it’s more the leadership group than the captain,” Archer said.
The Shinboner of the century was then asked if rising star midfielder Jack Ziebell, 21 next month, was ready for the captaincy at such a young age.
“He has got to toss the coin and give a bit of pre-match speech. I don’t think that would be too hard for Jack.”
Wow. Perplexing call. Naive call?
For Archer, such a courageous and inspirational leader during his playing days, to toss aside the captaincy of his former club like that was bizarre.
But is he correct? Has the role of the skipper really come down to that?
If a captain’s only duties are to lead his team through the banner, call heads or tails at the coin toss and give some words of wisdom before the first bounce, does it now not matter who the captain of your club is?
The art of leadership in AFL clubs has changed dramatically over the past decade. The emphasis on the leadership group, who work as a team within a team to take the pressure away from the captain and make more balanced decisions, is huge.
Being added or dropped from a leadership group at a club is huge news these days. You only had to look at the top AFL stories last week for proof.
Collingwood’s controversial decision to add Heath Shaw and dump Dane Swan from its leadership group made headlines. So too did the inclusions of Jarrad Waite and Mitch Clark into Carlton and Melbourne’s respective groups.
AFL umpires have also jumped on board the bandwagon, with a 10-man leadership group for this season elected during their annual pre-season camp in Ballarat two weekends ago.
So if a club is going to place so much emphasis on a leadership group consisting of five to eight men, is there much point in naming one captain?
However, it would be foolish to disregard the sole AFL captain. The role is still more than just a coin toss and a pre-game pep talk.
Perhaps the most important and valuable function of an AFL captain is his ability to lead by example. If he is applying and instilling his team’s values, his teammates, both younger and older, will follow suit.
Current Brisbane skipper Jonathon Brown is as inspirational as they come and leads by example every time he steps onto an AFL arena.
Brown always shows tremendous courage, constantly running back with the flight of the ball with little consideration for his safety. But he is also an accomplished and skilled footballer, taking contested marks and kicking crucial goals when his team needs it the most.
That is true leadership. That is why an AFL club needs a captain to turn to.
A captain is also needed to be the players’ voice and ensure there is effective communication between playing group and coaching staff.
Good skippers understand all the different personalities in a playing group and always sense the general feeling amongst the list. If he relays the players’ general thoughts and emotions to the coaching staff, there are few issues or barriers between the two parties.
The role of the captain off the field has never been so important either.
Mentoring younger players has become such a crucial facet of an AFL club. If a captain takes the time out to chat and encourage young players, who still might be coming to grips with the demands of the highest level, they benefit immensely.
It is also important for a captain to be a strong ambassador for his club in the public eye.
A strong skipper will represent his club strongly and stand up when a teammate, or the club in general, is experiencing a tough time. If he is able to portray a positive image to help the club’s brand, it will help the club attain sponsorship deals and reassure fans they support the right team.
However, all of the aforementioned could be done by any footballers who are not the captain. Sometimes a senior player, or a group of players, can have just as much influence on an individual or a team than its captain.
Essendon veteran Dustin Fletcher was a prime example of that in 2011, when he took Dyson Heppell under his wing and guided him through his first AFL pre-season. Twenty-four rounds later, Heppell was crowned the 2011 NAB Rising Star and the Bombers’ Best and Fairest player for the season.
You would be crazy to think the AFL captain role might be abolished one day. Surely it still has a huge role to play in the sport’s landscape.
But is Archer right? Has it become more about the leadership group than the captain?
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