Coaching Culture with Ben Herring

• What the Best Do Differently. Insights from Rugby’s Ironman: Jimmy Gopperth

  526 professional games !How do elite rugby teams cultivate environments where players willingly run through brick walls for their coaches? Jimmy Gopperth, with an unprecedented 526 professional games across 23 years at the highest levels, provides rare insights into what truly builds championship team cultures.Drawing from experiences at powerhouse clubs like the Hurricanes, Leinster, Wasps, and Leicester, Gopperth reveals that authentic team culture can't be manufactured or forced. The most successful environments make players genuinely want to train every day, play for their coach, support teammates, continuously learn, and freely express themselves. When coaches fail to explain the "why" behind decisions or provide inconsistent feedback, toxic factions inevitably form within teams.Trust emerges as the foundation of effective coaching. Gopperth shares compelling examples of how the best coaches develop meaningful relationships with their game drivers through regular communication, idea-sharing, and empowerment. When players contribute ideas that coaches genuinely consider—and even stand behind when they don't work—extraordinary trust develops. Perhaps most powerful is the concept of "player power," where coaches strategically use senior players to instill behaviors in younger team members, creating organic cultural transmission rather than top-down directives.Gopperth challenges conventional wisdom about "winning cultures," suggesting that focusing primarily on learning naturally leads to winning, while obsessing about victory without process leaves teams empty when results don't materialize. His perspective on longevity, motivation techniques, and the balance between rugby and life offers invaluable lessons for coaches and players alike who seek to build environments where excellence thrives.Ready to transform your understanding of team culture? Listen now to gain insights from one of rugby's most experienced professionals on how to create environments where players give their absolute best—not because they must, but because they want to.Send us a textSupport the show

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• Five Ways Great Coaches Anchor Teams in Tough Times

  The hardest weeks test more than your game model—they test your culture. When results wobble and the temptation is to drown the room in clips, we take a different route: start with why, connect the people, and then coach the work. Drawing on stories from pro rugby and lessons from coaches who’ve been in the fire for decades, we map out five anchors that keep a team steady when the scoreboard isn’t your friend.We begin by reshaping the meeting everyone dreads. Instead of leading with 34 errors, we set a clear purpose for the week—restore pride, honor the jersey, make amends to supporters—so the details serve a shared why. From there, we explore belonging before pressure, showing how the best coaches switch cleanly from fierce feedback to warm human connection, making criticism about craft, not worth. The conversation then moves to growth before outcomes, using smart film work to find repeatable actions after wins and losses alike, so the session plan becomes a lever, not a lecture.Leadership gets a rethink too. Rather than clutching the reins, we seed “leaders everywhere”: primed players take the floor in reviews, speak with confidence, and spread accountability across the group. And we close by protecting joy—the secret fuel in a collision sport that asks people to put their bodies in dark places. With an on/off training rhythm, sharp intensity at the whistle and laughter between sets, teams build bonds that endure pressure and perform when it counts.If you’re a coach or leader who wants a room that stays connected, learns fast, and doesn’t fracture after a tough weekend, this one’s for you. Subscribe, share it with a fellow coach, and leave a review with the anchor you’ll try first—purpose, belonging, growth, leadership, or joy.Send us a textSupport the show

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• Alando Soakai: Know your product, 'The game will take care of itself'

  What transforms a drinking club with a rugby problem into championship winners? According to Alando Soakai, it begins with crystal-clear values that everyone truly lives by.In this captivating conversation, Alando takes us through his remarkable coaching journey from player-coach to his current roles with Moana Pacific and the Tonga national team. His perspective on culture development comes alive through concrete examples rather than coaching platitudes – from filming players embodying team values to translating core principles into Japanese to ensure true ownership at Kubota Spears."The rugby will happen no matter what," Alando reveals, highlighting his philosophy that technical aspects are secondary to human connection. He distinguishes between merely "knowing" players and truly "understanding" their circumstances, particularly within Pacific Island communities where cultural context shapes everything.There's something refreshingly authentic about Alando's approach to coaching diverse teams. At Moana Pacific, morning prayer sessions bring together Christians and non-religious players alike, creating a daily ritual of connection before training begins. Working alongside rugby legend Tana Umaga, he appreciates how the head coach "saves his bullets" – speaking with measured purpose rather than constant commentary.Perhaps most inspiring is Alando's revelation about his vision board. Years before securing positions with Super Rugby and Tonga, he visualized these exact roles. His pathway wasn't just technical excellence but curiosity-driven professional development that opened unexpected doors.For coaches at any level, Alando's insights on creating diversity within coaching teams offers a fresh perspective. Different coaches connect with different player personalities, creating a complementary unit that reaches everyone effectively.Ready to transform your coaching approach? Listen now to discover how understanding people deeply leads to championship results.Send us a textSupport the show

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• The Gold You Didn’t Know You Were Mining

  Have you ever had a moment when someone's casual comment completely transformed your thinking? In this deeply personal reflection, I share three unexpected insights from players that revolutionized my coaching philosophy over decades in professional rugby.The first revelation came in Japan, where after stubbornly trying to implement systems that worked at Leicester Tigers, a captain gently explained, "Just because it works there doesn't mean it works here." That simple observation fundamentally changed how I approach new environments—reminding me that context and culture matter profoundly in leadership. The second awakening came when a player simply asked "Why?" during a warm-up drill, and I realized I had no substantive answer. This taught me that purpose must underpin every aspect of coaching if you want genuine buy-in. The third transformation happened after I missed celebrating a player's debut due to post-game frustration, when he quietly said, "Stay with us, coach"—a powerful reminder about emotional consistency and authentic leadership.What fascinates me is that none of these insights came from coaching courses, books, or planned development. They were golden nuggets that appeared unexpectedly in the stream of daily interactions. Coaching isn't about mining harder for knowledge; it's about developing the awareness to recognize wisdom when it passes through your hands—often from the very people you're trying to lead. The question isn't whether there's gold in your coaching river, but whether your eyes are sharp enough and your hands steady enough to catch it when it appears.Are you listening closely enough to catch the wisdom flowing past you every day? Subscribe now and join me each Wednesday for more Coaching Culture Reflections that might just spark your own leadership breakthroughs.Send us a textSupport the show

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• Dan McKellar on Discipline, Culture & The Dressing Shed

  Have you ever wondered what truly makes a championship team culture? Dan McKellar, current Waratahs head coach with a coaching resume spanning the Brumbies, Wallabies, and Leicester Tigers, cuts through the noise with refreshing honesty and clarity."Culture is just the actions of the people in the building," McKellar explains, offering a deceptively simple yet profound definition that frames his entire leadership approach. "When the last person at night shuts the door and turns the lights off, the culture goes with them. And then in the morning it comes in with the first person that walks in."McKellar opens up about the personal sacrifices required at the highest levels of coaching, candidly admitting that family sometimes comes second – a difficult reality of high-performance environments. Yet he balances these demanding standards with genuine compassion for his players as people first, athletes second. His authentic leadership style is summed up perfectly: "If you sway too much away from what you are as a head coach, it's bullshit."From his early days as a 25-year-old player-coach at Wicklow Rugby Club in Ireland leading men a decade older than himself, to his current role transforming the Waratahs culture, McKellar shares the leadership principles that have guided him. He emphasizes the critical importance of self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and being physically present with players rather than constantly hidden behind laptops and analysis.The conversation explores how small moments of connection with players compound over time, building the relationships that drive performance in the most crucial moments of games. Whether you're coaching at grassroots level or leading a professional organization, McKellar's insights on balancing discipline with enjoyment, maintaining perspective after losses, and creating environments where players genuinely want to be will transform your approach to leadership and culture building.Listen now to discover why McKellar believes the dressing room – not the trophies or salary – is what coaching is truly about.Send us a textSupport the show

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