Performance Analysis & Team Culture

Are you a coach trying to put in place a better culture for learning, development and performance? At Performa Sports we know how hard it can be to get that blend of personalities to all pull in the right direction, not just with each other - but for each other.

Player ‘buy in’ is a phrase we hear over and over again but we understand how difficult it is in amateur and semi professional sports for players to devote the time to playing when careers, families etc all require time too. To help you on your journey of installing a high performance culture, here are some points on how we feel Video and Data Analysis can go help start you in the right direction.

'Like baking a cake if you have all the ingredients but you don’t get the order and timings right...you could end up with a bit of a mess'.  

Clearly Define Cultural Preference - having one game videoed will allow you to review footage post match. From here organise some clips on how you feel the team should play and where they have implemented a style of play and principles you would like to see more consistently. This could be in defensive work-rate, vocal organisation or passing through a structure - it really depends on what your cultural principles are. Allow the stats and video to reinforce the good and allow the rest of your team meet those expectations.

Set Targets - Setting targets is something every team will do and with good reason. Targets give players something to aim for and coaches to refer back to. Choose manageable targets that are objective and clear-cut. Things such as defend better or attack with more creativity are subjective and down to the opinion of the individual, which should be set against context. Stats collected through performance analysis will tell you the ‘what’ but the video will let you link that to the ‘how, why and where’.

Connect to the bigger picture - having clearly defined your cultural preference and reinforced it through video it's now time to step it up and connect it to the bigger picture. Use your performance analysis as a way of not just reinforcing good habits and team principles but link it to positive outcomes on the pitch or what helped you reach your targets. For example, if someone loses the ball but works hard to regain possession and it either prevents a goal scoring threat or even provides one for your team. This is your opportunity to connect good habits to bigger picture of success.

Empowerment and Ownership - often when starting out in video and data analysis there is a preconceived idea that it should be a coach in front of players showing them the good, the bad and the ugly from their previous performance. In fact, this could be your opportunity to empower your players and allow them to take ownership. Choose a video analysis platform that allows players to login and view footage in their own time, in their own way

Engage and communicate - if you have managed to achieve all of the above then you are on the right track. This will give you an opportunity to engage with your players and allow them to engage with each other. Facilitate open conversations based around performance and culture in a group setting. Provide an open gateway for players and coaches to communicate.

Measure - Performance Analysis is the most efficient way of measuring performance without emotional bias. It will give you the facts that represent your team’s performance. Measuring these over time will allow you to recognise trends and gaps in data - positive or negative. Linking these to the video will allow you to openly view what leads to the outcomes and allow you to shape your coaching strategy moving forwards.

For more info on how you can link Performance Analysis to High Performance Culture visit www.performasports.com or email joe@performasports.com.