Amanda posted a discussion

I can't help but think about these kinds of things as it is my background and a bit part of the work I do...in the lead up to the 2018 season I watched with interest how the NZ Warriors were prepping. It wasn't all about the physical side, it was about the psychological side of things too (things like I have mentioned in the title. Obviously they had experienced a lot of disappointment and set a goal to succeed this season. Anyway, I remember saying to my son that I bet the Warriors would be serious premiership contenders this year and he laughed his ass off at me...I told him mark my words they will. So the season starts and we watch all games so my kid was amazed to watch the Warriors going from strength to strength. I noticed that in every game, they would do breathing exercises after major plays/tries/goals etc. Here is a little paragraph I found (link below the paragraph):They defended like Spartans, missing just 25 tackles of 376 attempted. So the Warriors took the points, and took the points. They landed penalty goals in the 53rd and 75th minutes. Previous years, 20 metres out in front, the Warriors, again, might’ve entertained us all with a try or a ridiculous stuff-up. There was rarely anything in between. Repeat set? What? In 2018 they take the points. And they breathe.Yes, the breathing. After tries, the Warriors gather in a group and “reset” by filling their lungs and becalming themselves. It looks almost spiritual. Always among the most talented of footy sides, it seems they’re grasping for inner peace. It was All Blacks captain Kieran Read’s idea. Warriors captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck is all over it.“Scoring tries, you know, we tend to get a bit excited as a group,” Tuivasa-Sheck said. “And in previous years … we’ve been ahead then lost in the last 10 minutes.“The breathing is just about coming together to reset, re-focus and get ready to go again. Focus on the next task.”Source: https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2018/apr/09/warriors-nrl-kearney-cowboys-clearyWhen Brad Fittler was named Blues coach I was excited. I knew he was a big believer in psych prep too and sure enough, stories began to crop up about his techniques..yoga, breathing, meditation, mindfulness and grounding techniques (examples of this are how he had them walk barefoot on the field, walking to the games). Here's a paragraph from one story (link below the paragraph):NSW players are barefoot for training because coach Brad Fittler wants them to reconnect to the earth. It’s a frostbitten 12C, a dirty nor’ easter is blowing at 42km/h and the grass is cold and wet. They walk in line as if they’re about to hold hands and sing Fleetwood Mac songs right here on Coogee Oval, but afterwards Jack de Belin says the Blues are revelling in their Origin camps, which occasionally resemble a hippy commune.“Just getting the minerals in through the feet,” he grins. “Getting the nutrients from the earth. It’s one of Freddy’s things. All the boys are on board. I suppose it’s one in, all in, with this sort of stuff. We’ve been doing some breathing techniques, the mindful breathing that gets you in the moment.“There’s been an option to do yoga in the morning, which has been awesome. It’s a different approach but if everyone’s in, it’s definitely beneficial. It hasn’t been one of those things where everyone is taking the piss out of it or having a giggle when Freddy isn’t around. We’re into it.” https://www.theaustralian.com.au/sport/nrl/state-of-origin-fittler-has-the-blues-barefoot-in-the-park/news-story/e51b996d3b5ddd1a3dd64051af070be5In watching Parra this season, one thing both myself and my son have noticed is that an element of panic (not sure if this is the right word?) comes into things when something goes wrong for our team on the field, and this panic then has negative effects on the following plays in the games. When something goes wrong, either for footy players or for the rest of us, natural human reaction is to have a negative cognition (thought). These thoughts then have a direct (and usually negative) effect on emotion, and it becomes a bit of a never-ending cycle because negative emotions effect your thought processes and your actions. A few types of negative thinking styles include catastrophising, shoulding & musting, labelling, emotional reasoning, black & white thinking, personalisation.....when I think about the course of an 80 min footy game, I imagine these kinds of patterns could happen.Anyway, with regard to negative thinking processes and panic, these are things that can be negated by the things in the subject line of this blog. In my clinical years I've seen it make huge differences.....and look at how the Warriors have played this year...and the NSW Blues who just looked spectacular!If you watch our team following the opposition scoring, our team usually tends to be scattered and not connected...there's no mental resetting going on etc. In these kinds of situations, the Warriors do their breathing stuff...they are all facing each other in a circle etc.So I am wondering..could some of the above mentioned be things the team could look at when preparing for 2019? Note: obviously understand that the physical/knowing the game plays the huger part ;) just looking at what other things might help the team.See More