Yesterday we teamed up with North American Irish Coaches Association again to talk coaching and development with former Irish player and current Republic of Ireland U18 Head Coach and Nottingham Forest Academy Technical Coach & U23 Assistant Coach, Andy Reid, along with FAI Head of Coach Education Niall O'Regan.
Having interviewed Andy previously on the Modern Soccer Coach Podcast in September, 2018, I was interested to see what he had made of his coaching journey so far. Andy’s passion immediately jumped out, along with his humility about the profession. Even with a wealth of experience as a player and currently working through the UEFA PRO License, Andy still believes that he is in the “learning phase” of coaching. He referred his experience with Keith Mincher as a youth player and how he taught Andy skills like how to “catch the mood that he was in” and understanding the power of that higher levels of awareness, along with what that could potentially bring to you as a person and a player. As the conversation moved more towards mindset and the psychology of the game, it was great to get Niall’s insight on how coach education at FAI is placing a huge emphasis on self-awareness and reflection for coaches. Niall explained that coaches should develop the understanding of themselves first, before they begin to deal with other people.
It was also interesting to hear Andy draw on his experiences as a player and the coaches who stood out to him in different ways. As he explained the impact that Billy Davies made throughout the week with session design and then how meticulous Steve McClaren was with his preparation, it was clear that Andy had been impacted by coaches who had a reason for doing everything and there was nothing done “just for the sake of it.” I enjoyed hearing how he feels that this idea of being purposeful and intentional in your work allows to be more creative in finding new ways to do the things that you are prioritizing. With Niall giving his insight as well, there was a really nice balance in the conversation between the value of experience and the importance of coach education.
You can watch the full interview below.
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