Latest in White Ball Hotseat Builds on 4 Values
So England's men's cricketers in the shortened forms have a new coach.
Aussie Matthew Mott moves alongside long-time friend (who he mentored in coaching too, perhaps), Kiwi Brendan McCullum over at his new rock-bottom red-ball charges.
Several injuries robbed England of World Cup glory at last year's rearranged T20 tournament. And will again be the team to beat when nations reconvene in Australia for the next instalment later this year.
As reigning 50-over champs, the pressure is on to regain the trophy.
The new coach has an intriguing brief overall, though. How to maintain the swashbuckling nature of approach whilst moving the teams on from this era of Captain Eoin Morgan formed success.
In reports relaying the fresh-in-post's suitability for the role, a glowing list of achievements shines. Across the board.
One detail which grabbed me, was how he began to transform the under-performing 'Southern Stars' Aussie Women's side into unbeatables.
Here's two explanatory paragraphs of journalist, Tim Wigmore;
Mott’s approach as Australia coach was in keeping with the philosophy that has sustained him throughout his career. A few months after Australia’s defeat to India in the 2017 World Cup semi-final - what Mott called the team’s “crucible moment” - the side reassembled at the National Cricket Centre in Brisbane.
Australia’s players agreed to four values - ‘fearless’, ‘team first’, ‘informed’ and ‘accountable’ - which were put together in a document. “We don't want any more fluff,” Mott recounted to Sporting News last year. “We just want one page that we can live by, we can hold each other to account on… Probably the one that gets the most airplay is fearless and that came out of that semi-final.”
Four agreed values.
No more fluff.
One page to live by.
What each other can be held to account on.
Yes, a salesteam is not a sports team.
Yet having a combined, shared, and bought-into set of traits that underpin one is vital.
In painful defeat, it was likely easier for this cricket coach to instigate such an idea.
You hopefully aren't in such a place.
So what will be you and your team's versions of 'fearless, team-first, informed & accountable'?