SIMON LEWIS: What it takes to be a great leader of men

FOR anyone unsure about the importance of captaincy in rugby, the build-up to this year’s RBS 6 Nations will have disabused them of the notion that the role is an irrelevance in the modern game.

This year’s championship will see three new captains from last season’s Six Nations, with Jamie Heaslip replacing Ireland skipper Brian O’Driscoll, Kelly Brown the latest choice to lead Scotland and Pascal Papé chosen to helm the French team as Thierry Dusautoir continues his return to full fitness from long-term injury.

The fact all three appointments received plenty of attention in the media suggests that captaincy is still a big deal to those who watch and support 21st century Test rugby, as does the ongoing speculation about who will lead the British & Irish Lions this summer when they tour Australia. England’s current incumbent, Chris Robshaw, meanwhile, discovered that the hard way when his decision-making in the November Tests against South Africa and Australia was singled out as the cause of both defeats.

Nor have the head coaches who chose their on-field leaders done anything to dissuade us of the notion that captaincy is a critical role in modern rugby. Take Declan Kidney, who spoke of the agonies of explaining to Brian O’Driscoll his decision to appoint Heaslip.

Kidney called that conversation with O’Driscoll one of the toughest of his managerial career, which suggests the position he was relieving him of was one of some gravitas.

“Sometimes as a coach that’s what your job is, to make the calls you feel are at the right time for the player even though the player mightn’t agree with you,” Kidney said, displaying some leadership qualities of his own.

Scotland’s interim head coach Scott Johnson broke with bold and brash Aussie image when he cited Plato during a press conference earlier this week in confirming that Saracens back row Kelly Brown was his choice to lift the spirits of a side beaten in November by Tonga.

“Choose someone of leadership qualities who does not want to lead,” was Plato’s mantra adopted by Johnson, who added: “I quite like that. When you look at parliamentarians these days, I think he got it right. That’s a pretty good basis.

“Captaincy is about deed in my book, not Churchillian oratory. I like doers. I don’t like the big talkers. The best captains I have worked with have been people who get their hands dirty, who get down and do it and show the way. I have a reluctance for callers to be captain because they’re talking all the time. Even with my wife, who talks a lot, I sometimes tune out after a while. If you are hearing the same voice all the time it loses its edge.

“I have been fortunate to work with some great captains: John Eales, George Gregan and the like. I thought Martin Johnson was a wonderful leader of men. What was common to all those people was that they did not say a lot but they did a lot. Kelly fitted the bill.”

France coach Philippe Saint-Andre is of a similar mind to his Scottish counterpart. Asked if the captaincy was still relevant the former Sale and Toulon boss said: “Yeah, the captaincy’s still very important because he must bring with him the spirit of the players.

“He’s a big link between the players and the coaching staff in terms of communication. But you don’t need a captain to speak all the time. You need a captain to say when the guys need to work hard so the guys will follow him. I think you need a guy with charisma, a guy who has the respect of the young players.

“Of course your 9, 10, still manage the game but that was the same 100 years ago. The captain is still very important for the message, and in the changing room he must be respected by the other players.”

Italy’s Sergio Parisse has been captaining the Azzurri since he was 24 in 2008. Again, knowing when to speak and, just as importantly, when to keep quiet, is one of the keys to being a successful leader.

“The most important thing to being captain is to have the respect of your team-mates and you win the respect every day in every training session, when you spend time out of rugby and most importantly, on the field,” Parisse said.

“From my point of view to be captain is not about making big speeches or talking too much but just keeping things simple and leading by example and all the time trying get a good harmony in the team.

“When you play at Test level you have some pressure every time, if you’re not playing or training you’re talking to journalists, it’s all part of being the captain. You also have to protect the team as well. It’s not easy but it’s a job, a responsibility I really like to have.”