Sam Williams on his first year as a head coach, why Super League's reserve grade needs scrapping, what Ricky Stuart taught him about coaching, and the lessons from Canberra, St George, Catalans and Wakefield. 🔥 Off Season Accelerator starts September 21st. Limited spots. 👉 https://ronanmichaelpt.com/ ☕ Fuelled by Arked Coffee. Speciality coffee without the snobbery. 👉 https://arkedcoffee.com/ Joined this week by my current head coach at Northern Pride, Sam Williams. Sam played for the Canberra Raiders, St George Illawarra Dragons, Catalans Dragons and Wakefield Trinity before moving into coaching, and he's just come through his first season in charge in the Queensland Cup. Having played and coached in both hemispheres, he's one of very few people who can compare the two systems properly. He doesn't hold back on Super League's reserve grade, why the Australian affiliate model works better, and what the UK would need to do to fix it. We also get into what Ricky Stuart taught him about caring for a region, why you can't fake being a coach, being 35 and one of the younger heads in the competition, and shovelling snow off a pitch at Wakefield. Recorded outdoors at Barlow Park, complete with a grass cutter. ⏱️ CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 00:56 A disappointing finish and a first year coaching 01:14 The first outdoor podcast 01:57 What rugby league gave him beyond the game 02:20 Canberra, Catalans, Wakefield and now Cairns 04:53 Debut and the 2011 pre-season 05:21 "Sammy, you're playing half in the second trial" 05:51 Playing with the men he watched at 12 06:53 Never feeling destined for it 08:56 Striking gold at Canberra 09:37 Stuck behind Widdop and Benji Marshall at St George 09:58 Off Season Accelerator 10:48 Catalans: new language, new everything 11:43 The run, and a first win at Leeds 12:39 One of the most desirable places on earth 12:57 Crowds, Headingley and Super League atmosphere 14:38 Expectations on clubs 15:27 Warrington taking a game to Dublin 15:53 New Zealand's talent pool 16:44 Coaching people outside of sport 17:07 What makes Super League special 19:29 Ricky Stuart and going back to Canberra 20:20 Caring about the region you coach in 21:11 "You can't fake how you want to be as a coach" 21:44 Being 35 and one of the younger head coaches 23:37 The biggest lesson going into next season 24:31 The Cowboys relationship 25:18 Competing with full time NRL systems 26:25 How the Australian affiliate system works 27:08 Would a reserve grade competition work? 28:18 "Knock reserve grade on the head" 28:40 The North Star is the NRL 30:26 A melee of obstacles 32:48 Embracing it when it's miles from what you know 33:20 Condensation off the roof and shovelling the pitch 34:38 Wakefield flying again 34:53 Arked Coffee 35:23 "That's not professionalism, that's fragility" 36:38 Going back to his hometown club 37:46 The 2019 Grand Final 39:51 "Not a rich man, but a rich man in life" 40:25 What the future looks like Guest: Sam Williams Host: Ronan Michael, professional rugby league player (Northern Pride, ex Bradford Bulls & Huddersfield Giants) and online coach. 📲 Follow the show Instagram: @ronanmichael_pt Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/49zf6kIygYfOKEB7MVrkRN Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/whats-the-message/id1781533599 #SamWilliams #SuperLeague #RugbyLeague #NRL #WhatsTheMessage
