• APA: Fergus, thank you very much for your time today. As one of the leading minds in high-performance sport; with a background in building and construction, advanced manufacturing and computer integration-based optimization – you have had a very eclectic journey up until now. Can you provide some insight into this path, and how do you feel this journey has shaped you?
  • FC: I’ve been very fortunate in my career. I never really had a plan. My plan initially was to be a teacher, but I always had a passion for sport and learning about sport. I simply used to save my money, buy books, travel to visit coaches all around the world just to learn about sport and to learn about what it took to be the best. I was fortunate to learn from some of the smartest minds in professional track and field, team sport and performance around the world over 10-15 years. How has it shaped me? I think if anything it has made me more humble and more aware of how little I don’t know rather than how much I do know. As Dan Pfaff says “nothing humbles you quicker than sport”.
“Nothing humbles you quicker than sport” – Dan Pfaff
  • APA: You started your career with the Welsh Rugby Union, before moving onto the San Francisco 49ers. How did you experience this change? What were some of the biggest hurdles you had to overcome? How did you acclimatize to working in the American sporting world?
  • FC: It’s funny, there isn’t a big difference between sports in different countries. The biggest challenge is culturally and if you’re, you know, aware of other people’s cultures and you’re respectful of them and treat them as good people, you always have a very good chance of being successful. The other thing is, be aware that other people have fears and insecurities and once athletes and coaches know that you’re there to make them better they will listen to you. Everybody wants to win, everybody wants to get better, so a lot of it comes down to your personality and simply being respectful and aware of other people and their cultures. The sport is the same no matter what country you are in.
  • APA: As a high-performance consultant to some of the biggest athletes and sporting teams in the world, are there any over-riding problematic themes that you have identified?
  • FC: Great question. You’re right many of the common themes exist in every sport. One of the first ones is communication. Many organizations have poor communication structures. Ego is often an issue. Rarely have I found that knowledge is the limiting factor, rather it’s an inability to work together as a team and as a group in high-performance organizations.
“Many organisations have poor communication structures. Ego is often an issue.”
  • APA: As a high-performance community where do you think we have gotten it right versus where have we let ourselves down?
  • FC: I think the biggest challenge that sport faces today, is an over-reliance on technology and a failure to look at “the person before the player”, or look at the person before the athlete. We have great opportunities to improve our players if we look at them as people first, improve them holistically, and really try and develop the areas that they are limited in, not see them as weaknesses but see them as opportunities for improvement. That comes down to profiling the player tactically, technically, physically, and psychologically. Not simply looking at GPS numbers or gym scores, but try and develop the player as a whole.

    “Over-reliance on technology and faliure to look at the person before the player, or person before the athlete.”

  • APA: As a high-performance community where do you think we have gotten it right versus where have we let ourselves down?
  • FC: I think the biggest challenge that sport faces today, is an over-reliance on technology and a failure to look at “the person before the player”, or look at the person before the athlete. We have great opportunities to improve our players if we look at them as people first, improve them holistically, and really try and develop the areas that they are limited in, not see them as weaknesses but see them as opportunities for improvement. That comes down to profiling the player tactically, technically, physically, and psychologically. Not simply looking at GPS numbers or gym scores, but try and develop the player as a whole.
  • APA: In one of your most recent talks, you speak about authenticity, leadership and the importance of developing strong relationships. In a world where everything is being quantified or turned into a statistic, do you feel modern high-performance coaches struggle with the emotional and psychological aspect of their role?
  • FC: Yes, and I think that as coaches, we sometimes struggle to understand ourselves. The sport has exploded at such a rate there’s so much money involved now, it’s very competitive, we have more and more athletes and players to coach. I think sometimes coaches forget that they need to look after themselves. I certainly have gone through periods where I’ve worked too hard, maybe not looked after my own health. I think players suffer sometimes from the same thing. That’s why looking at the person before the player is critical to sustained success. I think we can drive a team hard, train people hard for the short term and be successful in the short term, but sustained success requires a different approach and that means dealing with the person first and foremost as we develop the player for the long term. It’s one of the reasons that I think South African sport has a great future ahead of it. You have some great talent and great genuine people who want to win for the nation. I think there are great opportunities for coaches to really develop resilient players by understanding psychology.  Better yet, by using psychologists more to develop really resilient and robust players that can dominate for a long career.
  • APA: Being involved in the corporate, tactical and high-performance world. Who are your role models and where do you seek inspiration from?
  • FC: The role models that I’m most impressed with are those coaches who have had an impact on players both on the field and off the field. One of the questions I love to ask successful players is; which coaches did you learn the most from? and try and find out from them why they were successful and why they really enjoyed working with those coaches. And what you usually find is that the coach that had the greatest impact on them was the one who treated them as a person first and foremost, not a player. So my inspirations are people like Steve Hansen, Dan Pfaff, Scott Johnson, Graham Henry, Eddie Jones coaches like that who have had long careers and who players would turn to for not just professional playing advice but for personal advice also.
  • APA: What is your biggest tip to an athlete during this period of lockdown?
  • FC: Best advice I can give an athlete during this period is to use the time to develop themselves fully. Write down the top three idols, heroes in your position or your sport. Buy their biography on Kindle, read about them, study them, watch their clips of playing on YouTube, take notes, find out how you can improve, and practice. Use this time to be very disciplined and to develop your own discipline as an athlete, as a player and if there are areas psychologically or emotionally that you want to work on this is the best time you will ever get to improve and to find an edge because nobody is playing, nobody is training in groups. So you can use this time to really find an edge and it’s the same with coaches.
  • APA: How can high-performance coaches continue to improve during lockdown?
  • FC: Coaches have a wonderful opportunity right now to develop, to improve, to study. One of the biggest challenges you have in sport today is staying ahead of, or even staying up to date with what’s happening. Right now you arguably have eight weeks to study, to find an edge, to improve to look at yourself, look in the mirror and go; “ok this is where I need to improve upon”. And now you can actually do that, you can pick up the phone, find other cultures who are also not doing anything and share information with them, learn from them and study. It’s a wonderful time to develop as a coach. There are so many coaches putting up information and only too willing to share and now you have the time to do that.
  • APA: On a lighter side, if you were stuck on a deserted island, with your basic human needs taken care of (food, water and shelter) what two items would you want to have with you and why?
  • FC: Just a pen and paper. I enjoy scribbling, writing notes, sketching ideas and thoughts that I have, so if I had all of the basic necessities just a pen and paper or pencil and paper and I can sketch and plan and think things through. That’s really what I enjoy, I enjoy problem-solving.
  • APA: Fergus, we at APA thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to share your insight and experience with us. Let’s hope it’s not too long before you are back in Cape Town!
  • FC: Ruan, thank you so much for having me on, I really am humbled and honored that you asked me my opinion. Take care and I can’t wait until I come back to South Africa to see you all again. I really enjoyed my last visit, some wonderful coaches and some wonderful people.

From left To right:

Ruan Rust (APA), Fergus Connolly, Sandile Ncgobo

Stellenbosch, South Africa

Interview conducted by Ruan Rust