Perhaps it is my interpretation of our modern relationship with social media – however when teams are successful, in many ways they can attribute these successes back to humility, a cultural adoption of behaving perhaps and a particular way of carrying themselves when they win.
A few years ago, the All Blacks started to sweep out changing rooms and tidy the changing area before they left the stadia.
More than a few sporting codes caught on and as a result adopted this specific ritual within a team’s culture – the GAA being one of these.
It became a race to social media for many teams – ‘look at us - we are humble- this is success.’
Social media has its place – it can bring us great insight and indeed we can learn a fair bit from articles we would otherwise not have access to.
We have also seen the good side and bad when it comes to a team celebrating a county title.
I remember the good old days in the absence of phone recording, when pictures told a thousand different stories.
When my club won their first Second Division League title in Down in the early Noughties, the celebrations went on through that Sunday night and into the next day.
It really bonded the team and supporters on that occasion.
Granted it is no Championship – but success is relative to a starting point and for our team it was something special and the beginning of a bit of success in competing with more established clubs.
Saval had been knocking around Third Division football for a significant time up to that point.
Now winning (and losing) teams are partying for a week, maybe taking a 24-hour break to recover before heading the pub again.
All the footage is being streamed live on social media – not unlike the acclaimed TV show 'Big Brother'.
Call me old-fashioned – but most of the fun in reminiscing occasional successes was the imaginative elements to a story when ‘the story’ perhaps changed multiple times, depending on who told it.
It has now become a case of ‘who can party better – who can last the pace – who can create the most likes and draw the most attention?’
Our entire approach in the GAA is desperately unhealthy – from a drink perspective and social media perspective.
It’s not unheard of now that drugs are taken these days to ensure that participants can ‘last the pace’ of alcohol consumption when celebrating success.
I mean, do these guys really know what they are doing?
Do they realise the damage they are doing to themselves – not to mention society?
I get that society has changed.
I get that part of the enjoyment of winning is celebrating an end point, a finale.
My approach to winning football matches was always one of relief, in not letting myself down, my team-mates and my family.
It was that fear of losing which kept me going.
I always enjoyed the few drinks after as part of the greater ‘journey’ element.
I never believed in drink bans and taking an inflexible approach either.
A story Andrew Trimble once told of Joe Schmidt’s approach to managing the Irish rugby team involved Trimble dropping his card key of the hotel room at Carlton House, where the Irish team were based.
Schmidt had found the key on the corridor, went to reception, found out who owned it and delivered it to Trimble.
On handing over the key, Joe stated that it was sloppy of Trimble and if he could lose his room key – he could lose a ball or drop a pass.
Trimble had been warned.
Ironically, had Ireland have won a Rugby World Cup, this is the very example which would be used to eulogise Schmidt and his intense approach in preparing a team.
Conveniently or not, this latter example, is now being used in some quarters to highlight Joe’s ‘obsessive inflexibility’ to management and coaching.
One of many reasons why Ireland failed miserably.
The bottom line in all of this - I feel - especially with regard to team sport, in so far as ‘success’ is concerned, is that there appears no right or wrong formula.
But simple plagiarism is hardly innovative.
And success doesn’t have to be so flexible or inflexible in approach.
But I think it needs to be original at the very least.
Depending on where success fits within a team's goals, be it a promotion, or Intermediate or a Junior championship, it is important that at the centre of it all is a natural ‘humility’ adopted by manager and players.
Not one contrived, recorded and sent out en masse.
Footage of success may appear particularly popular at this time of the year when new champions are being anointed and maybe more than a few clubs have successfully retained titles.
For me success is all about the commitment levels over a season or seasons.
And the release in celebrating is that you have something to show for it at the end – notably in silverware and a few stories along the way.
Interesting, for the week in it, Bernard Brogan stated that it was his dedication to kicking 50 balls over the bar in the lead up to games which made him a better footballer.
He never felt sharp unless he ritualised his practice and preparation and surprisingly he felt football skill did not come natural to him – quite the opposite to how he appeared to me personally as someone who played against him.
I would have thought it did come naturally and always thought of him ‘a finisher’ of moves rather than creator or ‘worker’ (unlike me).
This took many seasons and years of practice to get to his levels of accuracy.
But as a player I see Brogan and his achievements in no different a light than those Dublin players who perhaps created those chances for him; who got the stuffing knocked out of them on the way to getting Brogan a score or two.
Success has many different fathers.
Ninety five per cent commitment they say, five per cent talent.
You may only see the five per cent talent bit – whether that it is a quality finish or pass.
The 95 per cent element determines whether you are successful or not.
Success isn’t demonstrated in cleaning a changing room or who parties the longest and loudest.
It’s not in a video or a bottle either.
In fact it probably isn’t even celebrated.
It is something internal – something bigger than cups and medals - a feeling when you look in the mirror and know that you made people happy – that you make people happy.
Personally, that’s my idea of success.
