Henning Gericke is looking for the Lions players to produce ’special moments’ this season if they are to break their losing habit.

The 2007 World Cup-winning team psychologist, who also worked with the Sharks during their 2007 Super 14 campaign, was employed last year as part of Jake White’s Winning Way consultancy, and new coach Dick Muir has since kept him on board. The ‘Kop Doctor’ has a history of working with successful teams, but the Lions have been anything but that in recent times.

Gericke is on a three-year contract with the union working two days a week and on game-days, and although he’s not naive about how difficult it will be to achieve success, he believes the players are showing positive signs ahead of Saturday’s match against the Stormers at Ellis Park.

‘There’s not a lot to choose between the players, and I’ve told them they must start doing special things to make it easier for Dick to pick them,’ Gericke told keo.co.za. ‘Fire and guts aren’t enough anymore, the guys need to gel as a team before big things can happen.’

The Lions don’t have an eye-catching squad, but Gericke says the correct quality of individuals are in the set-up.

‘You need the right people in the right positions if you are to break the losing habit. Dick is open-minded and he’ll tell the players to express themselves, which doesn’t put any unnecessary extra pressure on them. He’s also trying to create a culture where the players will fight for the jersey.

‘You have to have the right mix of people, from the captain, coaches, and the administration. [President] Kevin de Klerk is the ideal man who has all the right qualities to turn the union around.

‘We are also looking to develop more leaders in the squad. Baywatch [Grobbelaar] is a great captain, but we need a core group around him. ‘

Gericke has introduced a self-evaluation system that the players complete every week, which he hopes will make them realise their responsibilities.

‘It’s not just about having a team-talk on a Saturday. The players write down three or four mental things that they have to be sharp in. It starts on a conscious level where they get into a habit of doing things properly, and then on a sub-conscious level matters come naturally to them on game day.

‘The player will know he’s ready due to the preparation he did in the week. Percy Montgomery knew he would kick well because of the practice he did before games. It’s all about having a mental routine in order to be focused.’

Gericke acknowledges winning close games will be the marker of whether progress has been made.

‘We know there will be five or six close games this season. You have to have a core leadership group who all understand and believe in the game-plan. They must know the role they must play. We know it will take time but it’s up to the senior players to pull it through.’

Despite the aura of having intimidating Ellis Park as their home venue, Andre Pretorius believes it’s anything but a fortress. The former Lions flyhalf  said it’s more like an away game for the Lions, with more Stormers supporters again likely to be seen this Saturday.

‘You need to develop a family principle to get people back to Ellis Park,’ said Gericke. ‘But people don’t feel a part of a family if you’re losing. That can be developed, only a few years ago the Loftus crowd were booing the Bulls.

‘However, the crowd aren’t going to win you matches, it starts with the team. If we play well, the crowd will get behind us.

‘We’re realistic and know there will be hiccups, but I really believe we’re on the way up. We will make the Lions work.’

By Grant Ball

This entry was posted on Monday, February 8th, 2010 at 5:33 am and is filed under Super 14. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.