Playing with Joy!
- aaronptighe
- 2 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Watching the Asian women's Cup in Australia, it was a breath of fresh air to see the smiling faces of the Japan team as they made their way to the final and eventual victory. It was noticeable to see a spirit of enjoyment and joy in their ranks of players, bright young smiles of togetherness and appreciation for the moment.
As kids playing in the streets and parks with your friends, there is a feeling of camaraderie, competition, excitement, in-the-zone focus, fun, imagination, and freedom. You are with your mates, friends with no thoughts of what if I don't win, score, look good, succeed. There is no feeling of pressure. You laugh, smile as you celebrate with your mates to an imaginary stadium full of cheering fans. It's a magical time.
At some point in the young player's journey towards becoming a professional footballer, this freedom of enjoyment can be lost, in the fierceness of selections, trials, must-win philosophies, and the threat of being discarded by a club. The reality is that even if you make it through all of the professional academies set up, only circa 1 in 200 players will go on to have a career, less than 1%.
With this light-bulb fact, it becomes very clear of the importance of coaches, scouts, parents, guardians of young men and women to find the balance between excelling in performance and keeping that enjoyment spirit alive throughout the player's development. I was reminded recently as I listened to Manchester United legends Paul Scoles and Nicky Butt reminisce on the sessions Coach Jimmy Ryan used to put on where he wanted to create that street type football enjoyment in training with free-flowing games. It was what Jimmy and assistant John Faulkner did with us at Luton Town prior to Utd.
In the Japan team's case, Coach Nils Neilsen has created not only a brilliant technical and physical team, but a team spirit lit up by the players clearly enjoying their time representing their country individually and together as a team.
Japan’s women’s team are often called Nadeshika and have long played with:
Calmness under pressure
Collective joy rather than individual ego
Respect for the game and each other
The name Nadeshiko comes from a flower symbolising grace, beauty, and inner strength. That visible “smile” we see from the players is often:
A sign of composure
A reflection of team harmony
A mindset of “enjoy the game, trust the system”
This is a cultural mindset and has been added to by the current coach, Nielson, with an emphasis on psychology and freedom.
He has stated that:
He focuses on confidence and individuality within the team
Players have become more willing to express themselves and speak up over time
He actively praises their character, joy, and ability to keep playing freely, even under pressure
In other words, he has added to disciplined, technical, respectful with expressive and confident, creating a culture of less fear of mistakes and more visible enjoyment.
Something here for all of us involved in the beautiful game to take note of.
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Aaron Tighe
Founder, One2Pro
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