The best and worst of "Mental toughness" in Sport

[Aerie]

Steve Waugh is perhaps the best example in the sporting world of mental toughness I can think of. The countless times he got his team out of trouble through playing the game out in his head, keeping calm and getting the job done.

Daniel Motlop on the weekend was a classic example of the opposite. He was never going to kick the goal after his wincing when the final siren sounded. He didn't want to be there. I've never seen a better example of the game being played out in the mind. To be fair, he had a very good last quarter and I'm not sure many others on the field could have taken the mark he did to give himself that opportunity, but it goes to show how important psychology is in sport.

Can anyone think of any other good or bad examples of mental application in sport?

[mick]

Greg Norman most probably lacks mental toughness.

[Footy Chick]

Whats-her name in that rowing race at the olympics...although some would argue that would be physical....

[MW]

Hypothetical: Port make the GF and the scores are close in the last quarter...you would drag Motlop wouldn't you?
That wince was hilarious!!! I loved Dermies reaction to it "Oh no, he winced!!"

[am Bays]

Whats-her name in that rowing race at the olympics...although some would argue that would be physical....

Lay down Sally, She's training for Beijing ATM, but in the single sculls......

[mal]

Steve Waugh is perhaps the best example in the sporting world of mental toughness I can think of. The countless times he got his team out of trouble through playing the game out in his head, keeping calm and getting the job done.

Daniel Motlop on the weekend was a classic example of the opposite. He was never going to kick the goal after his wincing when the final siren sounded. He didn't want to be there. I've never seen a better example of the game being played out in the mind. To be fair, he had a very good last quarter and I'm not sure many others on the field could have taken the mark he did to give himself that opportunity, but it goes to show how important psychology is in sport.

Can anyone think of any other good or bad examples of mental application in sport?

Best example

Steve Waugh batting first as Tassie says.

Worst example

Steve Waugh batting 4th innings chasing low totals.

[MW]

Steve Waugh is perhaps the best example in the sporting world of mental toughness I can think of. The countless times he got his team out of trouble through playing the game out in his head, keeping calm and getting the job done.

Daniel Motlop on the weekend was a classic example of the opposite. He was never going to kick the goal after his wincing when the final siren sounded. He didn't want to be there. I've never seen a better example of the game being played out in the mind. To be fair, he had a very good last quarter and I'm not sure many others on the field could have taken the mark he did to give himself that opportunity, but it goes to show how important psychology is in sport.

Can anyone think of any other good or bad examples of mental application in sport?

Best example

Steve Waugh batting first as Tassie says.

Worst example

Steve Waugh batting 4th innings chasing low totals.

The fact that Steve Waugh needed to bat chasing 4th inning low totals was the bigger mental weakness

[Rik E Boy]

Best: Lance Armstrong by a mile. Seven time winner of the toughest sporting event in the world after coming back from Testisicicicicici ball cancer.

Worst: Mark Philipoussus. All the talent in the world but folds repeatedly. Injuries haven't been kind but you can see his self-belief dissolve in front your very eyes at times. It's over Mark.

regards,

REB

[MW]

Best: Lance Armstrong by a mile. Seven time winner of the toughest sporting event in the world after coming back from Testisicicicicici ball cancer.

Worst: Mark Philipoussus. All the talent in the world but folds repeatedly. Injuries haven't been kind but you can see his self-belief dissolve in front your very eyes at times. It's over Mark.

regards,

REB

REB, Lance would have track marks a junky would be proud of

[Booney]

Best: Lance Armstrong by a mile. Seven time winner of the toughest sporting event in the world after coming back from Testisicicicicici ball cancer.

Worst: Mark Philipoussus. All the talent in the world but folds repeatedly. Injuries haven't been kind but you can see his self-belief dissolve in front your very eyes at times. It's over Mark.

regards,

REB

REB, Lance would have track marks a junky would be proud of

What a stupid comment,after the bloke displays courage the likes of which a man of your abilities can only dream of,then to see the scrutiny he had to endure and still,still FFS come out on top and with out any evidence to suggest he was a drug cheat.Then have the audacity to throw in a as to suggest you have some sort of knowledge the rest of the world is unaware of.

[MW]

Are you for real Booney? Lighten up mate, it was a joke. Having a bad day?

[Booney]

Joke you may,but in a topic of mental toughness to even remotely suggest what you did is absurd.Always easy to say "lighten up it was a joke" afterwards.

[MW]

FFS Booney, build a bridge and get over it. Why would I give a f**k what you think anyway? And besides, I thought your standard post will be "meh" for the rest of the year...makes a lot more sense than all the other crap you post.

[Booney]

FFS Booney, build a bridge and get over it. Why would I give a f**k what you think anyway? And besides, I thought your standard post will be "meh" for the rest of the year...makes a lot more sense than all the other crap you post.

Play on mate,I have no need to stoop down....

[MW]

meh

[Squawk]

Darryl Cullinhan for South Africa was Warnie's bunny for years.
Mark Viduka at the penalty spot for Australia - concerning
Pork Power in finals (except 2004)
Some may say Greg Norman in the majors

Ivan Lendl was machine like - one of the first to be so focused at sport I reckon.
Monica Seles coming back to Court successfully after being stabbed.
Floyd Landis - he is about to have a hip replacement.
Stuart O'Grady - fractrured a vertebrae very early in the Tour and still finished the race!

Motlop should be dropped for that miss. It was only in his head that he went wrong - no wind, rain, distance, angle issues. But in his defence, not one senior Pork player went up to him before he kicked and said "take your time mate, pick out someone in the crowd between the goals, and kicking through the ball, hit them on the chest." Look what happended instead.

[rod_rooster]

Darryl Cullinhan for South Africa was Warnie's bunny for years.
Mark Viduka at the penalty spot for Australia - concerning
Pork Power in finals (except 2004)
Some may say Greg Norman in the majors

Ivan Lendl was machine like - one of the first to be so focused at sport I reckon.
Monica Seles coming back to Court successfully after being stabbed.
Floyd Landis - he is about to have a hip replacement.
Stuart O'Grady - fractrured a vertebrae very early in the Tour and still finished the race!

Motlop should be dropped for that miss. It was only in his head that he went wrong - no wind, rain, distance, angle issues. But in his defence, not one senior Pork player went up to him before he kicked and said "take your time mate, pick out someone in the crowd between the goals, and kicking through the ball, hit them on the chest." Look what happended instead.

Not that i'd be complaining if he was dropped but why should he be dropped for that? Do you drop every player who missed a shot on goal during the game?

[am Bays]

Best: Lance Armstrong by a mile. Seven time winner of the toughest sporting event in the world after coming back from Testisicicicicici ball cancer.

Worst: Mark Philipoussus. All the talent in the world but folds repeatedly. Injuries haven't been kind but you can see his self-belief dissolve in front your very eyes at times. It's over Mark.

regards,

REB

Lance is tough, bloody tough to come back what he has and to "win" seven Le Tours. He toughest of the bevy of cyclists on the tour of have good biochemists.

Whether he is the toughest because his pharmacological help is better than the others is the tragedy of doping as it adds an extra unknown as to who is the best/toughest/strongest athlete.

Until the UCI and IOC allow out-of competition blood testing for EPO to test for the un-loaded r-RNA that the AIS developed in 1999 this debate will continue.

The irony is it is the French (the ones complaining the most about Armstrong) and Italians who blocked the blood test for EPO for the Sydney Olympics.....

Who is the best sprinter out of Johnson, Lewis and Christie I don't know, but I know who the dumbest is as he got caught.....

So un til this whole drug debate is cleared up one and for all I can not give Lance the full credit he deserves as right now in the field of professional cycling their are big doubts as to who is clean and who is really the best/toughest....

[Squawk]

Motlop should be dropped for that miss. It was only in his head that he went wrong - no wind, rain, distance, angle issues. But in his defence, not one senior Pork player went up to him before he kicked and said "take your time mate, pick out someone in the crowd between the goals, and kicking through the ball, hit them on the chest." Look what happended instead.

Not that i'd be complaining if he was dropped but why should he be dropped for that? Do you drop every player who missed a shot on goal during the game?[/quote]

Yeah fair call Rod, when you put it like that. I guess it wasn't so much the fact he missed, it was the way he missed. The guy was on a hiding to nothing and bound to be hero or villain so to speak. Dropping him probably would mean he became an unecessary scapegoat for the performances of the whole team for four quarters. I guess if I think about it a bit more rationally then the Pork system is what was broken and that was the fact that no senior player, indeed no player at all, went to steady him BEFORE he lined up and took his kick.

As a Norwood bloke it'll be my luck he plays for you guys this week after all with a lot to prove! Well done to Jars for taking some heat off him in the news tonight also, when he replayed his missed shot on goal in the 1993 prelim that the Cows lost to Essenbombs.

[Footy Chick]

2 comments on your last post Squawk...

1) Motlop didnt miss a goal during the game... he missed a crucial goal AFTER the game that cost Port any minute chance they had of making the finals

2) Jars' shot for goal in that prelim is moot point, by that stage the crows had almost already squandered a 7 goal lead

Its the type of situation you can really play hypotheticals with.....

WHAT IF Plugger kicked out on the full in the sydney v essendon prelim after the siren in 96? Would he have been branded not mentally tough enough to cope with the pressure?

WHAT IF Rod Jameson hadnt kicked that goal after the siren in the pouring rain against Fitzroy back in 91?