The Up and Under

In most sports, there are moments in a match that can best be described as "transition moments".

A transition moment can last a few seconds - like the timing of a pass or the flight of a ball to touch, or they can be in a set play such as a scrum or a lineout, lasting over a more prolonged period.

At these moments in a game, the ball is moving, but its ultimate destination may vary from its anticipated destination - in other words, there are risks attached to transition moments. A pass may be intercepted, a ball may not bounce before it reaches touch or a scrum or lineout may be taken by the opposition. But without the inherent risk in transition moments, there would be no game. There would be no excitment.

The "up and under" or the "bomb" in rugby league, or in Irish rugby the "Garryowen" (named after the famous club from Limerick who used it to great effect) is another example of a "transition moment" in rugby.

The "up and under" is a very high kick, played by a team intent on putting thier opponents under pressure from a fast falling, high ball. The pressure comes as they attempt to make a catch with attackers advancing on them at speed. It's often used to relieve pressure when a team has been defending for lengthy periods - in other words it is both an attacking option and a breakout or breakthrough option.

When a ball is hoisted high into the air, its interesting to watch the kicking players next move - free from ball carrying, the player charges forward, unimpeded as the ball is in flight. His goal, to  catch the ball again and press on, or make a thumping tackle on the catcher before he can get a pass or kick away. One thing to notice about this transitional moment is the difference in the forward progress of a player without the ball - whilst the ball is in the air and the kicker is on the move, no player can touch him or tackle him. This is in stark contrast to making progress with the ball, when the player would be fair game to any opposition tackler.

Reflecting after watching a recent game in which this play was executed to great effect, I concluded there are some useful insights we can capture from the "up and under" for sport, life, service and business:

• you have to let go sometimes in order to gain ground
• when you release something you have to start to move in the direction of whats anticipated next
• when we send what we've been carrying upwards we can move forward unimpeded

As a man with faith, this latter point is important to me as I know I can trust the upward glance of committing things to God through prayer. I may not be certain at that point of how it will bounce back to me. It may not be as I anticipate, but I know that I can move forward unimpeded whilst what I commit to God is with him and when the ball lands so to speak, I will know what to do when I need to do it.

But rememering that there are risks to all transition moments, to use the play to maximum effect requires:

• an awareness of your position on the field of play in realtion to your team mates and the opposition
• an understanding that relieving pressure has purpose - the creation of a breakthrough moment
• an appreciation of the need to be prepared to adjust quickly if the outcome isn't what you had originally intended or anticipated and
• the moment the ball comes back to ground, you may be called on to catch what you have released or to make the tackle that gets it back

Thinking about business or serving or even in developing and growing strong relationships, all of these factors are important in knowing exactly where we are:in relation to others around us, the challenge of opposition and the need to have a plan but with an adaptive mindset as we move and flow with how the game pans out.

Remember what goes up must come down and so standing still is not an option. If we launch an up and under, we must be prepared to move, recognising that we have to take risks sometimes to create transition moments and that those transition moments can lead to breakthroughs...

Pick & Go

Sometimes we need to be deliberate in our actions. Simply responding to situations as they arise will inevitably put us on the back foot. Sure, there are times when we need to react as sudden or unforeseen events occur. But equally, there are times when we have to decide - it's down to us. It's now. We have to take a step forward.

In rugby union there is a play which is aptly named the "pick and go". Quite literally a player picks up the ball and goes forward. There are some key points to consider about this move. A player making the move has to:

• have the vision to spot a gap or a space to move in to
• accept that he is creating an opportunity for others to exploit
• have the courage to go knowing he will ultimately meet resistance
• go with the conviction that his movement will create a momentum which others can add their weight to

Usually pick and go is put into effect at the base of a ruck or a maul - that is a phase of play that has involved    direct engagement with the opposition, in which energy has been expended to recover the ball and often where forward momentum has been lost. Frequently, at these points in a game, or in our life experience, business activity or in serving other people, an injection of pace or energy is required to regain momentum.

The pick and go can be used to exploit the space around the side of a ruck or to attack the space left by retreating defenders. Unlike many moves in rugby union, where the ball has to first travel backwards before attacking the gain line, this play, is a "go forward" move. Its a direct attack on the gain line. (That is the point beyond which you gain ground on the opposition or competition). When played to its full effect, other attacking players are able to bind (hold) onto the advancing player, adding their individual weight to the momentum, driving the opposition back beyond the gain line. Now that would be a great way to regain the initiative in all areas or walks of life wouldn't it? - knowing that if you were to make the slightest move forward, others would join in support, adding weight to your purpose, initiative or vision.

The bible has an interesting insight into the mindset of a young fighter and his assistant. They had watched the inept attempts by those professionally qualified to repel the relentless attacks against the freedom and well being of the people. Their possessions, family life, businesses were being destroyed and their moral was being undermined. Even though today, we may not be facing such physical challenges, life can be pretty relentless in its demands. we can often feel drained by an unending daily cycle that can easily wear us down and halt any momentum we may have had. 

Together they decided to take action. Their mindset was "if we make a move, we might get some assistance, but if we don't we're going for it anyway" - help did show up - God helped them. Then, when others saw the momentum these "game changers" had started, they joined in and the result as they say is history - a famous victory. They essentially had a "pick and go" spirit!

Now, not everything we encounter in life requires a fighting response. But our life experiences, business ventures and even our close relationships often require initiators to make things happen. Initiative, like the pick and go move, can take us beyond the routine or ordinary. It's worth noting that often, those who initiate something are not always those that finish off a move. But it's equally worth noting that finishers can only operate if someone has been a first mover. Sometimes an initiator can make the break and run all the way to the line, scoring the points themselves. But invariably, they have to be prepared to pass, offload or go to ground and reset the play. The job is to be aware of the need for a momentum shift and be ready to initiate that shift. 

A pick and go can work from any point on the pitch, where someone has the courage to step up, pick up and press on. What challenges are you facing? Do you need to kick start something in your life, family or businesses? A first mover, initiator - a pick and go expert could be what's needed. But are we prepared to be the one who spots the gap, picks up and goes for it? If we do, who knows where help will come from? If we make a move, God is never very far away.

Wearing my hero's socks!

Back in the days of flared trousers and tank-tops I was lucky enough to get on a school trip to watch the touring All Blacks rugby side. Taken in by the incredible pace and power of the game, I determined I would play like the team I had just seen and in particular, the great, All Blacks captain Graham Mourie.

Before my next game, I went to a local sports shop and bought my own All Blacks......socks. Black with three white hoops around the top. I discarded my school rugby socks, broke the rules and wore my heroes socks. It worked. Over the season, I became the top try scoring forward. I became the only player in an entire season to score a try against an all conquering, regional championship team as they swept every other team aside, without conceding a single try. My achievment even got a mention in Rugby World magazine. I was the English Graham Mourie - well, I was when I was wearing his socks.

Life, like sport, is filled with heroes and villains and I suspect no hero is perfect. However, as teenager, I saw something in someone else that inspired me to reach further. It wasn't really the socks. If it had been, they would have been no more than a luck charm or me following some kind of pre-match ritual. No, it was seeing someone I admired, doing something that I could actually see myself doing. That was inspiration. Something I saw, experienced, that called to something inside of me. The socks were just the way I expressed affinity with my hero.

There is an interesting account in the bible, of a time when a nation's leaders failed to give it the direction it so desperately needed. Sound familiar? For the record, there is a list of those responsible. Not surprisingly, the list contains politicians, religious leaders and the security forces. However, right at the top of the list, was an unexpected group: heroes! On a list of the great, the good and the powerful, the primary responsibility for taking a lead fell to the heroes and the question was asked; where are they?

Now, we may not feel very heroic and we may think the things we do are mundane. But as I look back to my formative years, my hero was simply someone who inspired me to reach beyond my immediate grasp, to travel further, to climb higher. I saw a "hero" and decided to have a go too. I may not have achieved the status of sporting legend, but who knows where I would have stopped or parked up, without the inspiration of a hero.

There's a generation looking for heroes. Sons looking for fathers, the lost looking for hope, captives longing to be liberated from the mundane. Where are the heroes of today? They have just read this blog.
So come on, its time to get our heroes socks out from the back of the drawer and go inspire a generation....