Coaches' Blues

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Insomnia.  Coaches know what it means and no dictionary can surpass their definition of the word.

A basketball team loses. Coach is to blame.

Baseball is the same.  Some guy who has been on the bench for most of the season flexes his arm and wallops a home run to kingdom come.  The coach, who was confident about his pitcher keeps his cool and maintains a stiff upper lip, although he is not related to the British royal family.
Photo credit: online pic, Raptors Assistant Coach Adrian Griffin with fam.

Not at night.  He won’t sleep a wink.  The writing is on the wall.  He might be reminded of some fine print in his contract then hits the road to the next coaching job, if he gets one.
Why is the coach the victim when he is not on the baseball diamond, soccer stadium or the ice hockey rink?  Coaches deal with 9 or eleven individuals, who are not twins.  Sure, they want to win, get some baseball championship rings, be noticed by British teams like Arsenal or be included in the Hockey Hall of Fame, but that doesn’t change the fact that they are individuals.

Some are in love with the mirror.  ‘Lord I’m fine.’  His team doesn’t matter, his ex-wife doesn’t, even his kids do not matter.  In fact, he thinks he is bigger than the coach.  Other players have unresolved personal issues that landed them in a city they hate.  There are just many things the coach cannot touch because there is a DON’T DISTURB sign on them.
The remedy for coaches and insomnia is to go the tennis way.  Rafael Nadal is on his own on the clay court and he must size up Roger Federer, find out his mental game.  Nadal cannot blame his coach for four double faults now, can he?

 Game. Set. Match.

By:  Nonqaba waka Msimang.

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