Interview with Dave Alred Genious or Con?

An interesting article in The Independant with Englands Kicking coach Dave Alred stating that Wilkinson can get even better at his place kicking.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/dave-alred-jonnys-kicking-is-improving-all-the-time-ndash-and-hell-get-even-better-2350774.html

The question for me, and a lot of Leiceaster fans, is whether Dave is actually coaching the England kickers correctly, or is he damaging players with natural kicking talent? Flood and Wilkinson both got in to the England team with very good kicking percentages at their clubs. While Wilkinsons has stayed up (which you'd expect, and many might state was more a pointer to Wilkinsons obsessive practice) Floods has dipped dramatically over the course of the years internationals.

Interestingly it is Flood who has had the most time with Alred and who has now changed his kicking style after sessions with the England coach. Almost straight after this change his percentage took a dramatic dip and he missed quite a few simple shots in the recent 6 Nations. Flood's club coach Richard Cockerill laid the blame squarely on Alred for the change, which also carried on when the player was back at the Tigers.

some players react differently to different coaching.

Obviously Alred is a massive positive influence on Jonny.

Maybe Flood isn't mentally strong enough a lot of Alred's stuff in mental prep rather than just physical.

Didn't Alred completely change Flood's kicking style? I don't think that's got anything to mental strength strength. Might be an example of a coach knowing one way of kicking and trying to force all players into the same system. Instead of improving their current style. Flood's percentages have always been pretty good and before got settled into the England kick he knocking the vast majority over (even the difficult ones).

How much of an actual influence is he on Wilkinson though? It seems to me that Wilkinson would be a brilliant kicker with or without him, but is too much of a pro to ever slate a coach.

I think his effect on Flood is more telling and Thunor may have the right of it.

hmmm I'm wrong, I was thinking of Steve Black, you're right. Alred is farkin things up.

You also need to bear in mind that when changes are introduced into someone's technique their short term performance may well suffer. The hard thing is to believe that the changes are correct and to persist until longer term improvements are realised. Look at what heppened to Faldo when Leadbetter totally changed his swing....took him a couple of years to get back to winning form. Alred's technique may well be brilliant, but no doubt it is proving hard for Toby to change. Hopefully it will all work out.

Does anyone seriously doubt Alred's ability as a kicking coach? He has coached Wilkinson since 1997 - he is an INTEGRAL part of Wilkinson's success. Just read the list of those players who have approached him for help:

Wilkinson, Hodgson, Flood,Barklay, Rob Andrew, Jonathan Webb, Stuart Barnes, Paul Grayson, Neil Jenkins, Steven Jones, Ronan O’Gara, Matthew Burke, David Campese, Mathew John and Berrick Barnes. In soccer they include Joe Cole, David James, Shay Given, Mark Schwartzer and Richard Wright.

Pretty emphatic evidence that the guy is not a con.

Agree 100% with ML here.

If you have have an opportunity to go to a workshop of his GO. It applies not just to sport but to all walks of life.

He shows you how cope with pressure and use it to your benefit.

Wouldn't call him a Genius (Genious??) but a very astute abd clever individual