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?
James
Guest
"Twenty-four rounds later, Heppell was crowned the 2011 NAB Rising Star and the Bombers’ Best and Fairest player for the season." David Zaharakis won the Chrichton Medal (Bombers B&F). Heppell was 7th.
damo
Guest
Australian Rules hit the nail on the head- demonstrates the clubs values. Look at the clubs with new captains in melb and north. Both have young, fresh, youthful leaders, who not only personify the rebuild of their respective clubs but are also players driven to succeed and work for said success. They tipyfy the clubs current state. A captain should reflect their club, and serve as the personal example to all players. Majak Daw should really be think right now, "is that what swallow would have done?"
Australian Rules
Guest
Undoubtedly the roles of the captain in rugby, and esp cricket, are more prominent than in Aust Football. I'd also agree that the role of teh captain has been somewhat lessened over the years...from often being a Captain/Coach in the early years, to then usually being the best player, to nowadays, being someone who demonstrates the values to which their club ascribes. But to say it's irrelevant I think underplays it. The captain must be at least in the top 5 players at the club. They must be tough at the ball always and lead by example on and off the field. In that vein, they must also be good media performers in the modern era - the amount of media, social and community functions required of the captain is (like it or not) becoming a key feature of the role. But most importantly, they have to be able to communicate with their teammates (through actions and words) on the field.
sheek
Guest
I agree with Archer, & I concur with the direction Australian football has moved in having a "leadership group" rather than one specific captain. You would have noticed the toss in the NFL Superbowl. There's seemed to be half a dozen captains on either team! Leadership is often terribly overrated in our society, especially in business. Those individual who can inspire others mostly by their own actions & example are actually very rare. The concept of a leadership group works better, bringing together a bunch of guys who all have particular skills that can be useful in motivating others. The leadership group is particularly apt for Australian football. There are 18 on-field players strung out over huge distances having to make snap decisions on the run. There's no time for consensus, or a committee meeting. In these situations, having sub-leaders is good, as they can marshall the players around them, in groups of 5 or 6. In fact, Australian football is a game where I would encourage every player to be a leader, to read the play, to make decisions off their own bat, rather than wait for someone else to tell them what to do. The coaches lay down the overall strategy, but the players react to what they see & know. It was this highly self-reliant, independent streak that made the Australian digger such a formidable soldier in two world wars & other conflicts. They made senior officers virtually redundant.....
Greg Mac
Guest
I think the vast majority of Captains aren't going to have a huge influence on the direction of their team... No more than any other member of the leadership group anyhow. But there are some cases where one individual seems to be able to lift the rest of the team if not the whole club. J.Brown is definitely one of these at Brisbane, and I think Harley did the same from a club-culture perspective at the Cats.
Brian
Guest
I agree captain at an AFL club is largely irrelevant. There's a leadership group and out of say Hodge & Mitchell does it matter who tosses the coin? Who is captain is still a decision for the club to think about but these days player No 22 on the list staying injury free is much more important than which leadership group member becomes captain. I agree with John, Cricket is probably the only major Australian sport left where a captain is important because he makes important game defining decisions, like whether to bowl Marcus North. I am not too familiar with Rugby, whether its the captain who can choose whether to take a penalty or go for the try.
John
Guest
It seems the culture of captain is starting to leave the game, and this is happening to more codes as well. The only captain that seems to really drive a team with authority is the Cricket captain. I'd posit that losses are his fault, where as games won are thanks to the team. Do captains in AFL have that kind of responsibility? It's tough being able to exert much influence on the big field. Leadership teams also help absolve one of sole responsibility.