SSSM > Success …
I was discussing the merits of playing ‘A’ grade football , with a group of players from the Carlisle ‘D’ grade squad way back in 1999, when one of them said to me there wasn’t much difference between the top four grades!
As Captain, he argued that his team had the skill to play in the A grade and had the players to do so. (At that stage they were sitting in second position on the D grade ladder and were favored to win the flag).
Unfortunately, the Carlisle Cougars had slipped out of the A grade back in the late 70’s and there were no current players with that experience he could relate to.
I used the Acronym SSSM to tell him that there was a vast difference between the D grade he was playing in and the A grade in amateur footy!
I explained that SSSM had been used by one of our old coaches in A grade and was defined as Size, Strength, Skill and Maturity
I explained that in terms of size, most A grade players had mature bodies and as well as being tall they had the strength, to last through the hard demands of footy in that grade.
Having played in the A grade myself for a number of seasons, I knew that two nights of training a week were not enough to keep up with the rigors of the grade and you needed to do extra running or gym work. (This conditioning can be seen when leading A grade clubs run out on to the ground.)
Skill was a deciding factor in team selection and this factor included speed, with the ability to kick and handball on both sides of the body and hold marks.(Many of the players around the Carlisle club in those days could only use one side of the body.)
We discussed maturity and the commitment of the leading players in the club to have the strategic intent to make the club successful on and off the field.
Following from this, was the requirement of players being good communicators throughout a match, including the concept of nominating themselves when entering contests.
High levels of concentration also included ‘thinking forward’ to attacking and defensive moves during the game.
The leading teams in A grade always remained composed and never seemed flustered.
One of the reasons for this, was their ability to make position through short or long leads, with all players in the action zone participating. Once they had gained control of the ball it was always difficult to get it back, because of their accuracy.
I will always remember this conversation because it was with a very good friend and Life Member of Carlisle, Terry Dunlea Jnr., who went on to win a record number of fairest and best award’s however was denied the challenge of playing A grade footy.
When I think back to our old coach Harry Outridge, his useful acronym SSSM still applies and may be helpful to any young footballer desiring to play at the highest level.
This page is dedicated to Sebastian Butchers 41 Haynes Street Kalamunda WA 6076 who proudly sponsor the Pickering Brook Football Club Telephone: (08) 9293 1224
