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Ian Evatt turned to Leeds United master Marcelo Bielsa in an effort to get Wanderers out of their League Two funk.
The Whites head coach was looking to add a competitive edge to his team after five straight defeats and so turned to one of the Argentinian’s famous training drills.
The ‘Murderball’ session involves a full-sized, non-stop game, where coaches constantly keep on top of the players and the ball is never allowed out of play.
Eoin Doyle described the drill as “hectic” but admitted it had helped sharpen things up in the build up to a must-win game at Harrogate.
Evatt was livid with his players’ performance the previous weekend against Newport but sensed before Saturday’s game that there had been a sea change in the players’ attitude.
Regardless, he conceded there was extra pressure on a result at the Keepmoat Stadium.
“There is always relief, let’s be honest, because the longer it goes on the more worried and nervy you get,” he said.
“It isn’t so much me. I have an unwavering belief in myself and it has taken years to develop but I haven’t always been that way.
“After the game Saturday and on Monday we had some really strict and strong words and I have definitely seen a few different things.
“We changed the working week up, had them in Monday to Wednesday and then let them rest Thursday to get their energy ready for Saturday.
“We have done Marcelo Bielsa’s famous Murderball just to get each other at it and ratting, aggressive and angry with each other.
“It has worked and I am so proud and happy for them because they haven’t become bad players in the space of three or four weeks, we always said we were a work in progress, but we needed this.”
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The Whites head coach was looking to add a competitive edge to his team after five straight defeats and so turned to one of the Argentinian’s famous training drills.
The ‘Murderball’ session involves a full-sized, non-stop game, where coaches constantly keep on top of the players and the ball is never allowed out of play.
Eoin Doyle described the drill as “hectic” but admitted it had helped sharpen things up in the build up to a must-win game at Harrogate.
Evatt was livid with his players’ performance the previous weekend against Newport but sensed before Saturday’s game that there had been a sea change in the players’ attitude.
Regardless, he conceded there was extra pressure on a result at the Keepmoat Stadium.
“There is always relief, let’s be honest, because the longer it goes on the more worried and nervy you get,” he said.
“It isn’t so much me. I have an unwavering belief in myself and it has taken years to develop but I haven’t always been that way.
“After the game Saturday and on Monday we had some really strict and strong words and I have definitely seen a few different things.
“We changed the working week up, had them in Monday to Wednesday and then let them rest Thursday to get their energy ready for Saturday.
“We have done Marcelo Bielsa’s famous Murderball just to get each other at it and ratting, aggressive and angry with each other.
“It has worked and I am so proud and happy for them because they haven’t become bad players in the space of three or four weeks, we always said we were a work in progress, but we needed this.”
Source