Racist Bastard!

Now I have your attention. I’m 57……Less than 30 years ago the internet as we know it was born. I clearly recall ADSL modems as recently as 2000. I’d click on the internet and go and make a coffee. If all was good on my return a page had loaded…. Now I’m making complaints to BT because I’m not getting 30mbps download.

I have fond memories of 3 channel TV. Crittal windows, frost on the inside (no double glazing), No central heating. 40% of homes had a phone. My father’s car, rarely used, had drum brakes, no seat belts. There was no M5 or M4. No M25. We spent holidays in a caravan with gas lighting and no running water.

My father was born in 1933. His father was born in 1906. My life is influenced by a man born barely after the death of Queen Victoria. The very first flight took place 3 years before my Grandfather was born. 18 years before that we saw the first cars. In 1881 electrical supply to domestic premises started to become more commonplace.

Born in 1963 I knew my father as a man that could never say he loved me. I knew he did, of course. But such was the world in which he was brought up. Such is how the world has changed in such a very short time.

And the world has changed. Mightily.

Almost 400 years ago a man was born who had no idea of electricity, engines, flight, wireless communication and so many other things we take for granted. He was born into a world that is simply unrecognisable to you & me. He was born into a world that does not recognise the humanities as we know them today. Countries with borders. Countries with people, with languages. A man that simply had no knowledge of Africa and it’s peoples and who never travelled there.

And to understand Africa you MUST travel there. The borders that exist today were imposed on ethnic groups by European settlers. These borders are still not recognised by most ethnic groups. But Africans that have now taken over the government of these countries use these European borders to their advantage. The fact is that most of these countries exist as groups of ethnic groups that remain at war with each other and have done for decades if not hundreds of years with loyalties changing every second day, week or month. But Western governments still try to manage the problems in Africa by using these age old standards.

But back to Calston. The ignorant castigate him, drag down his statue and throw it in the harbour without a seconds thought about who the man is. A slave trader. End of. After all, wasn’t he a “Deputy Governor” of the Royal African Company, a company set up to trade gold, silver & ivory along the African West coast?. The company was set up by King Charles II and his brother the Duke of York (later King James II). Calston was employed here for 12 years, twixt 1680 & 1692. He was a Deputy Governor for one year.

The African slave trade was fed by West Africans. The vast majority of those who were enslaved and transported in the transatlantic slave trade were people from Central and West Africa, who had been sold by other West Africans to Western European slave traders. This is the part that most Europeans simply cannot grasp or refuse to understand. The African slave trade was formulated by those that thought they were superior  in Africa. Different ethnic groups traded other ethnic groups and used them as their own slaves. This doesn’t absolve Calston. But he was a part of a system that existed and was accepted at the time. It was NORMAL at the time. It was part of the company before he joined and was part of the company after he left. He did not create it.

This was a time when blacks were considered inferior by whites. Europeans had no knowledge of them as a people. Had no knowledge of their language or their ways or history. And they cared less. Blacks were simply seen as inferior. They had no formal education. They were differently dressed. They were simply seen as creatures.

Today, in the West, we know and accept this is wrong. Today we know and accept we are all equal. But this simply was not the case 400 years a go in a world we have no experience or genuine knowledge of. A world we do not and cannot understand but by which we judge of today’s standards.

So how should we judge this “slave trader”. He never went to Africa. He never loaded ships with slaves. I have few doubts he ever knew how many slaves died en-route. He did, however, fund Bristol to the tune of around £20,000,000 in today’s money.

£20,000,000 dedicated to housing, schooling and healthcare. But we judge this man by today’s standards when we should judge him by the standards of 4 centuries ago. But if we judge him by today’s standards then what of the schools, housing and hospitals he funded? Should these be dragged down as well?

Swathes of people now castigate him but remain silent on what goes on in Africa this day. They fail to recognise what China does in Africa on a daily basis. They fail to recognise the child slavery occurring simply to deliver their e-goods. Safely they condemn an occurrence from 400 years ago to assuage their guilt but remain mute about the horrors that continue today.

The Difference Between Winners & Losers.

In my last blog post one of the last things I mentioned that is essential to success for any team is cohesion. Some teams have it and some don’t. If you don’t understand it’s relevance and importance as a team manager you’ll never achieve it. I stated that I felt our DoR was ONE of the barriers to Cohesion for Gloucester. He’s now gone. I actually felt Ackers was also a barrier but to a lesser extent. He has now gone. But what is cohesion and why is it so important.

The easiest way to show what cohesion is is to choose teams that have it in bucket loads. Teams like Sarries and New Zealand. The All Blacks come from a nation 1/12 th the size of ours, less than 5 million compared to our 60 million. So why do they consistently trounce us (played 42, won 8). I think it may well be the smaller group they call from that helps. A team that stays together, plays together. Sarries is very much the same. Each season a small evolution in the squad rather than a massive revolution.

Cohesion is very much a science. It requires detailed understanding of psychology and an innate ability to build a team. Something Gloucester have been missing. Certainly we’ve hired some extraordinary talent over the years, and continue to do so. But a uniquely talented individual does not necessarily help build team cohesiveness. Someone may have an extraordinary level of ability but may struggle to work effectively within the larger team framework and deliver on that level. Any fracture within the team will destroy cohesion and effective teams are ones that remain united.

So how do we deliver a cohesive team on the field, and by team on the field I mean ALL aspects, from CEO to Hydration and every level in between? Clearly, there are key elements. Instead of going for the most talented and most expensive player choose one that has lived & breathed the team their whole career. One of the reasons I was gutted at the Loss of Hinkley. Yes, we have a wealth of talent in the back row but for how long will we be able to afford Polledri? And when Jones doesn’t come knocking for Ruan (’cause, while I like the lad, he’s along way short of England material in my opinion) will he hang about? And for Hinkley, in lieu of Glaws his choice of Exeter said a lot to me.

So world class is not necessarily what you want. Often a squad of 2nd or 3rd choice players will be a more cohesive unit because they’ve been on the training field together more often. Let’s face it, the BaaBaas don’t win many matches despite the quality of player. There was a time in the 70s, of course, but that was when the BaaBaas was effectively the entire Welsh back line and who doesn’t enjoy watching THAT try time after time. An amazing moment of rugby despite JPR being almost decapitated……TWICE!

There are many aspects of teams that eventually lead to a cohesive unit. Hiring the right (not necessarily best) people. Ensuring everyone’s contribution is valued. Empowering team members, creating leaders within the team. Resolving conflicts within the team quickly and effectively (cutting out the cancer!).

Influences on cohesion are several. One of the aspects that keep members of a group united is if they share similar values and attitudes. Employees and human beings, in general, always prefer the company of those who hold similar opinions, beliefs, and codes of conduct because they provide some form of social validation. But similarity of interest or opinion is not the only factor that drives team cohesion. In some instances, the primary task that needs to be accomplished keeps the group members united. For example, when a military unit is sent on a mission, accomplishing the task at hand becomes the cohesive factor. Whether or not the soldiers have similar attitudes and values does not matter much. Rugby is very much a metaphor for the military here.

The longer the group remain together helps to build that cohesion as does previous success within that group. Threat & competition to the team play a significant part, an essential element in Rugby.

Cohesion, then, refers to the degree of closeness that individuals feel within a team. The forces that bring group members together can either be positive or negative. The main factors that determine team cohesion are the similarity between members’ interests, group size, shared successes, and the threat of external competitors. There are different ways of improving team cohesion such as empowering group members, resolving disputes, and valuing every contribution made.

Team cohesion has been found to be essential in providing several benefits. For one, team members who work cohesively are likely to achieve their goals faster and more efficiently, and also, individuals in cohesive teams experience greater satisfaction which, therefore, leads to a greater desire to continue to contribute.

I think Gloucester RUFC have taken significant strides in removing barriers to team cohesion but I’m yet to be convinced those in charge have the where with all to genuinely deliver a cohesive team. Time will only tell. But just because someone like Dai Young or Richard Cockerill look good on paper there is a reason both left Wasps & Tigers respectively.

Reading back through this I think Gloucester’s deficiencies can be clearly identified. We have had no cohesion for many years. When the new Head Coach and Defence Coach are appointed I sincerely hope they have a proven history of ability to deliver the cohesion required for Gloucester to succeed. We shall have to be patient.