Performing When It Matters: What The England Football Team Can Learn From The Success Of Leeds Rhino

After a successful qualifying campaign, England have booked their place at next year's World Cup in Russia. After what is now '52 years of hurt', every football fan in the country will be praying that the Three Lions can finally deliver on the big stage once more. Millions of fans will pour into pubs cladded in retro England shirts, bearing the flag of St George and belting out the national anthem, filled with that deep belief that England might just do it. In reality, English fans will most likely leave in tears as they do on a biannual basis, England flattering to deceive and disappointing when it really matters: at a major tournament. Here at Ballersblog, we have decided to take on the age old challenge of pointing out how England could be a little less rubbish. Our strategy requires the FA to look to another sport: Rugby League.

Super League's most successful club, Leeds Rhinos have proven time and again that they know how to perform when it matters, winning eight Grand Finals, two Challenge Cup finals, three League Leaders' Shields and three World Club Challenges since 2004. What is it that makes the Rhinos so special? What can England learn from their success?

1. Build Around a Strong Nucleus of Homegrown Players

The term 'Golden Generation has been used regularly to describe England's squad in the early 21st century. The likes of Paul Scholes, David Beckham, Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard, John Terry, Gary Neville, Rio Ferdinand, Michael Owen, Ashley Cole, Wayne Rooney and more were expected to end England's wait for a major trophy but never delivered on the world stage, ultimately failing to live up to the name 'Golden Generation'. Perhaps the term 'Golden Generation' is most appropriately used for Leeds' home grown talent of the past 15 years. Leeds' eight Grand Final victories have been built around a core of academy graduates including Kevin Sinfield, Rob Burrow, Danny McGuire, Jamie Jones Buchanan and Ryan Bailey (pictured above). McGuire and Burrow each won their eighth Grand Final in last weekend's Old Trafford showpiece in their final game for the club, and although the only remaining player from the above picture is Jones-Buchanan, the winning formula Leeds have developed has been passed on to younger players such as Stevie Ward, Kallum Watkins and Liam Sutcliffe, indicating that the Rhinos could be a major force in the coming years, despite losing several club legends.

So how can the England team replicate this? 2017 saw England's youth teams perform phenomenally, most notably the Under-20s side winning the World Cup. England fans are understandably excited by the abundance of talent coming through the ranks, so England should look to build around a group of young players to increase their chances of sustained success. In Harry Kane, Raheem Sterling, Dele Alli and Marcus Rashford, England already have promising talent who are proving their worth in the Premier League every week. Add to this to potential of players such as Dominic Solanke, Jaydon Sancho, Kyle Walker-Peters and Harry Winks and England have the potential to build an exciting squad.

2. 'We Found A Way To Win'

As Leeds Coach Brian McDermott put it, Leeds 'found a way to win' when it mattered. There is no coincidence that Leeds hit top form towards the end of the season, perfecting the art of play-off rugby to win five of their eight Super League titles without leading the table after the regular season. In particular, the Grand Final successes in 2010 and 2011 from 4th and 5th place respectively showed the Rhinos' ability to come up with the goods when the pressure was on, or not on, as the case often was. Regularly facing a side which finished higher than them in the league, the Rhinos were often portrayed as the underdogs, a label that Leeds embraced. Perhaps rather than piling the pressure on the Three Lions next summer, English fans should ease off on the young squad and see if England can succeed as underdogs. A winning formula is also required, which can only be developed through big match experience. Rugby League fans new that if the rain was falling on a cold October's night, no matter who the opposition, Leeds would find a way to win. England need to find that winning formula, and having star players Dele Alli and Harry Kane perform under pressure against Real Madrid in the Champions League will do no harm whatsoever.

3. A Team Greater Than The Sum Of Its Parts

To win their eighth Super League title, Leeds were faced with the task of beating League Leaders Castleford Tigers, who had steamrolled their way to the top of the table in 2017, playing some eye catching attacking rugby and rightfully earning themselves the title 'Classy Cas'. Following a 66-10 thrashing at Cas in March, Leeds were dismissed as a squad past their best, and still missing the influential trio of Kevin Sinfield, Jamie Peacock and Kylie Leuluai, who had been so dearly missed in the Rhinos' abysmal 2016 campaign. However, Leeds went on to turn their fortunes around and reach Old Trafford with the same squad. There is no denying that the Rhinos' squad included some 'world class' players such as Australian hooker Matt Parcell, Super League legends Burrow and McGuire and England duo Kallum Watkins and Ryan Hall, but it is arguably the squad players who make Leeds such a successful side. Less skilled unsung heroes who give 110% have been an integral part of Leeds' success in recent years. The likes of Ian Kirke, Brad Singleton, Jimmy Keinhorst and fans' favourite Anthony Mullally have bought into the Rhinos' philosophy that the team is greater than the sum of its parts, beating teams packed with superstars such as the Warrington Wolves side of 2012, proving that when it comes to success, it takes more than just natural ability. Gareth Southgate could use this philosophy when selecting his England Squad for next Summer's World Cup. Hardworking grafters such as West Ham captain Mark Noble and Leicester centre back Harry Maguire could prove to be more of an asset to the side than their arguably more talented compatriots such as Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Chris Smalling. England fans must be fed up of watching players pull on the famous jersey and give minimal effort, yielding poor results on the pitch. Perhaps the selection of harder working, more passionate players is the answer.

4. Find an Inspirational Leader

As Wayne Rooney's distinguished international career came to a close, as did England's 'not-so-golden-golden-generation'. Despite the fact that they failed to perform on the international stage, the England side of the early 21st century was packed with leaders. Gerrard, Lampard, Terry, Carragher, Neville, Beckham and Ferdinand were all inspiring leaders at club level, but since their retirement the Three Lions have struggled to identify their next leader. Since Rooney's retirement, England have experimented with Gary Cahill, Jordan Henderson and Joe Hart as captain, but none of the three have managed to make the role their own. Often looking lost on the pitch, England are crying out for someone to stand up and lead from the front, and who better to do so than star man Harry Kane? The 24 year old is no longer a rookie, and has the look of a seasoned Premier League star, scoring over 20 goals three seasons in a row. Questions remain over his unproven leadership credentials, and there are calls for Kane to focus on being England's star man rather than be saddled with the pressure of captaining the side. However, returning to Rugby League, in Kevin Sinfield Leeds had a true leader who took on the captaincy aged 23, and went on to arguably become the club's most successful ever player. Sinfield kept a cool head in big games, and never let the pressure of the captaincy hinder his own performances, in fact he thrived on it. Similarly in other sports, England have had successful leaders who have been excellent individual performers, such as Martin Johnson, England Rugby's World Cup winning captain. Kane should look to these national heroes for inspiration, lead from the front and help create a national football team that England can be proud of.

It remains to be seen how England will fare in Russia next summer, but one thing is for sure, Gareth Southgate and the FA should look to other sports for inspiration in the long run, not just the success of Leeds Rhinos but also other English national sides, for example the models on which the England Cricket team won three successful Ashes Series, or how the England Rugby team have recovered under Eddie Jones since the bitterly disappointing 2015 World Cup Campaign.

We've taken on the challenge of suggesting how England can finally end their agonising search for silverware, let us know how we did!

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