Alex Sanderson is known for his open, honest and blunt nature. In his own words, Steve Borthwick tells him nothing because, “he knows my mouth is like a tap”. But off the back of a stirring win over Harlequins and days away from a game against Toulouse, with the opportunity to avenge one of the toughest loss of the season, Alex spoke with particular raw candour.
Another open truth about Alex is that he is a fierce advocate for conquering the mental aspects of elite sport. He revealed his friendship with Bill Beswick, a psychologist and former coach at Manchester United, among other clubs, turned author.
He said: “I am proud to say he is one of my mentors, and I read his book, ‘The Intangibles’.
“He stated the neurological truth that at home games your testosterone is raised by an average of 5%, and that’s seen in work-rate, aggression, drive.
“So, if you’re wondering, are the players going to put on a performance? They will and that is science-fact, not just a feeling. They are up for it and in front of a packed house, and a little bit burned from what happened in Toulouse a few weeks ago.”
A compelling fact when you consider Sale have only lost once at home this season, to Harlequins in November. A fact that Toulouse are no doubt aware of.
Speaking on Toulouse, Alex described the advantage of a return fixture at home, now with a firm grasp and understanding of how the opposition play.
He said: “People don’t realise how fast they are to strike, and they are unbelievable opportunists.
“If you give them a sniff then you’re in the tumble dryer, just chasing shadows. They got us on a quick tap and on a few other occasions, when we weren’t alive to it, now we are.
“40% of their tries are off first phase, and 76% off the first three phases, which shows the nature of their attack, it is only really Quins and Gloucester, in the Premiership, at a push, that can strike that fast and play with that level of unpredictability.”
A big challenge for Alex and the team this week will be transitioning from the high of beating Harlequins in London, and the magnitude of effort and focus that must have taken, to shift the focus to the five-time European Champions, with just a short six-day turnaround.
When asked about Harlequins, Alex spoke about the many ‘learnings’ that he and the rest of his coaching team took from the game.
He said: “The part of the game I was most impressed by was when Quins scored just after halftime. When you’re under the sticks again, in those crucial moments, it’s about being calm and composed and clarity of message and going back to the plan.
“To not think you need to chase the game and do something different as an individual but to go back to working as a collective. Because we were in a similar situation against Toulouse, and we conceded again soon after.
“So that composure we showed Sunday, that we didn’t show three weeks before, that is one of those learnings that we want to take into this week.”
It is an exciting time for Sale on and off the field; with the high-flying performances of the team attracting interest from myriads of media outlets endeavouring to crack the code and tell the secrets of the extraordinary run of form. Filming has taken place at Carrington for the last few weeks for a ‘fly-on-the-wall’ documentary, mirroring the likes of ‘Drive to Survive’, the exponentially popular Netflix series focused on Formula One.
One of the many steps that are being taken to improve the product on and off the field.
When asked if he is worried about spilling the secret ingredient to success in the documentary Alex confidently replied: “Knowledge is knowledge and by the time it gets aired we will be on to the new thing.
“We are creating something special, we have some really good characters around this place. And if you create something unique and a bit different, which is has to be if you want to create something special, then that message should be shared.”
Another string to Alex’s bow is his sophisticated man-management. He cares profoundly in developing relationships and having an acute understanding of what makes people tick and in turn, understanding how to get them to peak performance.
After arriving as Director of Rugby two years ago Alex has got to know two of the biggest characters at Carrington very well, Tom and Ben Curry.
He said: “The misconception is that you talk to them as a collective, but they are very different people. They have their own motivational drivers and their own X-Factors.
“It starts with trust and with a rapport, you have to find out who they are as individuals. You have conversations at the pressure points of the season, ‘rainy day’ conversations, as we call them, when things aren’t going your way, that is when you find out who they really are.
“They do rely on each other a little, but they’re their own people, they deserve individual time and attention.
“They do play better together because there is love there and love breeds oxytocin which drives you harder and for longer.
“It is funny really, I can tell the difference now in their characteristics and mannerisms that make them so obviously different, but at the start it was purely a haircut.”
On the note of individuality, Alex was full of praise for how Ben and Tom have advanced their skillsets to become more versatile and well-rounded in their own rights.
He said: “In rugby terms, Ben used to have a point of difference with ball in hand in attack, while Tom was maybe more physical and breakdown-orientated.
“What we’ve seen over the last 6 months is them coming together in playing style. Tom has the ball in his hands more and Ben has manned-up physically, he wins turnovers and belts people defensively. So, where there was perceived difference, they are far more aligned.”
Alex wrapped his press conference by contemplating a question on whether has become more comfortable in the role of Director of Rugby in the last 24 months. Hesitating at first, Alex laughed and explained why.
He said: “There is things that I find less stressful, but I don’t know about ‘comfortable’ because every week something comes up, a curve-ball that you have never seen before. Every time you think you have a hold on things life finds a way to say, ‘no you truly don’t’.
“But I look forward to it now, in a slightly sadistic way.”
The Match Report 
Loved this one Ben, and learnt a few more things as well. Probably more than normal even so well worth the read fror me!
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Another enjoyable brilliantly researched and written piece Ben. I’m sure a career is on it’s way 👍👍👍.
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Another enjoyable, well researched and written piece Ben. I’m sure a career in journalism awaits. 👍👍👍
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Sorry Ben I appear to have commented twice 🙈🙈
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