Like any successful team, the Imperial Lions have established a competitive culture driven by Wandile Gwavu’s coaching philosophy, writes Ongama Gcwabe.
Barcelona FC plays for Catalonia, they play for freedom, while the All Blacks are driven by Whānau, a concept that embodies teamwork.
The successful Proteas team of 2012 worked closely with Owen Eastwood, a lawyer turned performance coach who helped the team discover who they are.
He didn’t have to look far for ideas, he found out about the concept of Ubuntu which is at the heart of what South Africa stands for.
A team in identity crisis quickly turned things around and went from being number four in the world in 2010 to being number one in all formats in 2012.
Lions coach Wandile Gwavu has established a team culture that resembles that of any successful team.
“The Lions are a very competitive team. They want to be the best and want to be globally recognized” said Gwavu exclusively to Cricket Fanatics Magazine.
“I think that’s the one thing that the guys are driven by, that they’re not just happy with being the best in the country. The guys want to touch the hearts of people outside the country or continent.
“Most of the guys that we have in our squad, they’re good human beings before they are good cricketers.
“We talk a lot about being good people and being good examples and good role models for people out there.”
But culture follows strategy and strategy is derived mainly from the philosophy of the coach.
“I’m somebody who’s driven to achieve. I’m very big on excellence, I’m driven by excellence” added Gwavu.
“I think that’s the one thing that stands out for me when you talk about Wandile Gwavu.
“My philosophy has always revolved around three pillars:
- Honesty – Which I think is hard to find in our circle and everywhere you go. I know that as much as it’s tough I try and practice it as much as I can. Honesty for me is something that I talk a lot about.
- Consistency – You don’t find consistency everywhere. I think once you’re very consistent as a person I think the people that work with you find it very easy to work with you.
- Hard-work – Hard work is hard work there are no two ways about it. You got to work hard and you got to work smart. You got to always find ways to make yourself better and achieve excellence.
“For me, it’s all about excellence and being true to who I believe I am”.
Gwavu is by far the youngest franchise coach in the history of South African franchise cricket.
As a young coach, he has had a lot of success that many young coaches couldn’t even dream of.
“I can’t explain the feeling, to be honest with you. It’s still surreal to me. It’s something that I’ve always thought about and wanted to achieve” said Gwavu about winning the 4-Day title in his first season as head coach.
“As a young coach it’s been a great experience, it’s something that I’d wish for a lot of coaches in the country that they can experience for themselves.
“The one thing that stands out for me is just the learning that has taken place. I think that’s one of the most important things whether you’re a young coach or a very experienced coach that the learning never stops. That’s the one thing that I live by.”
I know for a fact that there’s a lot of young coaches all over the country who want to make it big in cricket or any other sport.
Wandile Gwavu left a message for those coaches.
“There’s no shortcut, there’s just no shortcut. There’s a lot of hard work that they need to put in, they’ve got to be willing to work hard even when the going gets tough,” he concluded.
“Most importantly they mustn’t want to be another ‘Wandile Gwavu’. They can never be a ‘Wandile Gwavu’.
“If someone wants to be a cricket coach they must have their own reasons why they want to be a cricket coach because I have my own drive and my own reasons why I want to be a cricket coach. They must want to be their best”.
Read: “We looked for Ex-Factor”- Wandile Gwavu on Lions signings
Photo: Twitter/@Parvinderspeaks
