I have recently begun work on a book entitled ‘Tales From The Dugout’, an idea which developed following a chat with the Scotland manager Gordon Strachan, and which has already provided me with some incredible insights, and a lot of laughs.
Gordon was talking about some of his experiences, encounters he’d had, and situations he’s had to deal with in technical areas over the years, and suggested there must be a book to be written. Having taken him up on that, and having already spoken to a number of players, managers and officials, I have very quickly discovered the national team boss was absolutely right.
There have been stories of conflict, of spur of the moment bust-ups, and there have been genuine laugh out loud tales of the most ridiculous happenings, the likes of which those of us in the press boxes, commentary gantries and stands are simply not aware of.
I have heard of the manager who, in a fit of anger, thumped his walking stick on the track only to see it go spinning on to the pitch and almost take out one of his own players; of the assistant manager who took a phone call in the dugout mid-match assuming it to be from his boss who was sitting in the stand, only to find it was his mother passing on her shopping list; of the physio who fell asleep in the dugout after a particularly heavy night out; and of the management team who were so fed up with their side’s performance in a pre-season tournament that they walked away from the dugout, left their team to get on with it, and went to have a beer.
One of the interviews I have already conducted was with Craig Brown and, given his long and varied career in the game, it will come as no surprise that he had countless tales to share.
In addition to the stories – and there were some fantastic ones – what Craig also offered was a glimpse into the meticulous approach he has adopted during his decades in charge of teams, and the importance of the dugout, or technical area, as part of his overall management.
First and foremost, he spoke about the placement of the dugout, and pointed to a number of grounds where the home HQ is in the wrong place, his point being that the away coaching staff are given better access to the stand-side linesman and more easily able to try to influence him.
He also revealed a tale about Gerard Houllier who, when he was manager of Lyon, deliberately moved the home dugout away from the linesman as the Frenchman kept getting into trouble with the authorities for berating the official.
Craig spoke of a ‘dugout etiquette’ which he expects all his players to adhere to, and which he sees as a vital part of the overall team spirit.
He told me he has always had a strict code of conduct for players who are being substituted off, and how they should react both to the player replacing them and when they take their seat on the bench. And he demands that everyone in the dugout supports those on the pitch, revealing that one ‘sulking sub’ who didn’t celebrate a goal scored by a rival for his position was never again selected for his team at the time.
The dugout has always been a rich source of controversy and humour, but I hadn’t fully appreciated the role it can play in a manager’s overall strategy and approach.
You can follow Richard Gordon on Twitter @RichardGordon48
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