"Xs and Os" Coaches Corner - Craig Mansfield

Episode V in our X's and O's Coaches Corner series, where we catch up with Head Coaches from around the NBL1 West to get some valuable insights from them. This week, we head to the leafy and luxurious western suburbs to catch up with Perry Lakes Hawks Women's Head Coach Craig Mansfield.

Q: You've had quite the basketball journey having been involved at Kalamunda, Lakeside and now in charge at the Hawks, along with various state team appointments along the way as well. How has that history of coaching at various clubs and tournaments shaped the coach and person we see today?

A: The journey and clubs have definitely shaped the coach and person I am today through the people and experiences I’ve had. I was fortunate to have some excellent mentors at a young age including Warren Kuhn and Murray Treseder and a great experience as a coach in a high-level NCAA program. I have also put in a lot of work and for many years was coaching SBL, a State team, assisting at WNBL and working full time simultaneously.

I was also fortunate to be given an opportunity by Andy Stewart as a Head Coach of SBL / NBL1 at age 23 with Lakeside. As a young coach I was focussed on coaching professionally, which definitely had a self-performance aspect to it. As well as this I am very much an experiential learner and have made my fair share of mistakes that I have had to learn from.

As I matured and settled into a career away from coaching it has allowed me to more naturally spread my focus on the people around me; how can I help my players? How can I help them grow as basketball players and people? How can I help my assistants and other coaches I meet at the club with their goals? How can I work with the Hawks staff members who support our team? I know it sounds like a cliché (and don’t get me wrong I genuinely care about winning and we work each week to perform as well as we can) but being part of those journeys and seeing those people have success is what I find most rewarding.

Q: You have always had great success in taking NBL1 women's sides who have largely flown under the radar with developing youngsters and one or two restricted players, to create teams that always seem to challenge anyone they play against. What do you put that down to and how much of that is getting your players to buy into your mentality and systems you run?

A: In all my years coaching I’ve never used the phrase “buy in” once. I try to work hard, learn on the job and be honest with my players, that means talk honestly about their performance but also honestly about my performance. These days it’s not uncommon for me to kick off a Tuesday film session talking about some of the things I have learned from the game or will adjust for us moving forward. In my experience “buy in” becomes an organic part of this process.

Players working together, understanding roles and playing hard is so important. I know a lot of coaches have varying opinions on the importance of team culture and chemistry when compared to talent, but I think it is critically important. A mix of talent can win on any given night but if you want to set a foundation for success longer term, for a program to have an identity that can be looked up to within your club and influence others, to provide the growth opportunities on and off the court for those involved, and most importantly to work closest together in stressful, challenging and competitive situations then culture is a huge key.

Personally, I’m quite proud of the length of time I’ve been coaching but also that I’ve shown an ability to be successful with different mixes of players, different styles of play and in different environments. Any success I’ve had is a result of coaching great players, but isn’t tied to one specific situation.

Q: As we enter the 2024 finals season this weekend, your Perry Lakes squad finished the regular season in fourth position, with an away qualifying final down in Rockingham set to kick off your finals campaign. What have been some of the highlights and challenges for you so far this season and how will you address those heading into a qualifying final in a little under two weeks’ time which could see you two wins away from a spot in the big dance at RAC Arena?

A: We have had some challenges with health and availability through the season as a lot of people have. Our thoughts are with these girls as they recover and we can’t wait to have them back in a Hawks uniform in the future. We had a challenging schedule through that period and how the team continued to work and play together, how players stepped up into different roles and how the leadership group lead from the front is the thing I am most proud of this season. Rough weather reveals character and this team has shown great character at every opportunity.

As far as finals go, we have a defined style of play and a group that will compete and work together. I’m a big believer that your game performance flows on the back of multiple weeks of great training sessions, so we have been as productive as we can every minute of every practice to get ourselves ready.

I also can’t let this question go without mentioning our CHW winning a close grand final last weekend. We value this competition in our program and I’m really proud of all the players, Coach Pisco and Team Manager Stacey Apostolou.

Q: The Perry Lakes program is arguably the most successful program overall in the state at SBL / NBL1 level, led by the late, great John Gardiner dynasty with the Hawks men in the mid 90s to early 00s, Rick Morcom having similar success with the women's program across that same time period including a threepeat in early 2000s. Being put in charge of a program with such stories and rich history must come with a strong emphasis to perform well and almost an expectation that success will always be not too far away. How have you found your time in charge of the program so far and moving forward?

A: I don’t think it’s arguable, the banners are up there in the building showing that success in both the men’s and women’s programs. We would love to put more up there in the near future but we know this is a process and is the result of hard work and continuing improvement. 

When I chose Hawks I had other opportunities but Hawks is where I wanted to be, I applied for the coaching job they advertised, I wasn’t approached. Their successful history, desire for sustainable success and club values were really appealing to me. Two and a half years in and the club and their support has been amazing, it really feels like home for me and my family moving forward.

Rick Morcom is a coach I have respected for years; I was a young coach losing to him when he was at the height of his success but even as an opposition coach he was always great to talk to and learn from. Having him available to me as a resource at Hawks has been insightful, helpful and I always review games with the commentary on to hear what he has to say. I know a few of my players who also do the same and value his commentary which is great.

Q: In your time as a state coach, you've worked with some fantastic coaches both as an assistant but also as head coach with some going on to have great success themselves as head coaches in recent times. Do you feel there is a different sense of pride / pressure when putting on the black and gold rather than just a 'club land' polo and can you share for us some of your finer memories at nationals level that you have had? What advice would you give for any aspiring WABL coaches coming through looking to take that next step into the state high performance programs?

A: The State team and high-performance programs were very different when I was involved, but the first bit of advice I would give any young coach considering a WA team is to put your hand up. Coaching for your State is completely different to a club environment, tournament coaching is also a different and unique skill that is valuable to learn and is translatable to NBL1 finals coaching. It is a great environment as a coach to learn communication skills with a high-performance coach, with parents, how to handle a selection process as well as the ups and downs of tournament play.

There is plenty of performance and preparation memories - camps, team building events, heart breaking losses that still sting now and game winning shots. However, when our WA athletes enter the State team program it is such an informative time in their basketball and personal development, so it is a huge honour to be a part of that. There are many players and coaches still in NBL1 and WABL basketball who I was involved with at State and they still talk about the tournaments and experiences they had and what they learned. Just last week I bumped into Jessie Edwards and had a phone call with Desiree Kelley and they still brought up memories from State teams even after all these years and how it has helped them or how much they enjoyed it.

Finally, we have our Ten Quick Responses section to get some answers to life's real problems!

1) Player or Team Staff Member on your roster with the worst habit / why?
First to pop into mind is probably Millie McCarthy for “miscounting” the score in every scrimmage or game and then arguing it when she’s corrected.

2) NBL1 West GM Brighton Pass lets you be League GM for a day - Name one change you would make / why?
I’ll probably be in the minority here but start the season in early March, have all teams play twice and go back to head-to-head tiebreakers exclusively. It doesn’t matter if some professionals and imports get here relatively later in the season. They can still qualify and play finals, plus what a great experience for the players who actually do most of preseason to play in a real NBL1 environment under lights early. It’s also a great way to reward the clubs who put a bit of care and development into their returning players.

3) Despite a fairytale run through the early stages of the finals, your Hawks Women get knocked out of the 2024 playoffs - Who wins the title & why?
I’ll go with Cougars, they’ve proven it last year and added winning players to their group for this season.

4) Any pre-game routines or superstitions you have to do before tipoff?
I try not to be superstitious as it feels like a slippery slope. About as far as I’ll go is late in the season or in finals if I win with a specific whiteboard marker I’ll keep using that one.

5a) "Mickey's a mouse, Donald's a duck, Pluto's a dog. What's Goofy?"

Goofy is a dog with bad teeth in my estimation!

5b) Without googling it can you name the film that quote is from?
Stand By Me. I’ll confess to using Google because I had no idea, but I can’t believe I forgot, I loved that movie as a kid.  Great question!

6) Your fave NBA team and fave player (Current or Former) from that team?
Boston Celtics, I’m wearing my recently delivered 2024 championship hoodie right now. Paul Pierce was drafted in my teens and their best player through most of my 20s and early 30s so I’m going to go with him.

7) GOAT Debate - MJ or LeBron?
MJ and it’s not a debate.

8) Which rule would you bring back and why - Jump Ball instead of the stupid possession arrow or 1 & 1 foul shots for team fouls 4, 5 & 6 each quarter, similar to what happens in the NCAA at the moment?
The jump ball, I like the chaos of a jump ball and when they occur near baskets it creates an extra strategic situation to manage so I’ll go with that.

9) Add one player from another NBL1 West team and add them to your side - Who are you taking and Why?
If we could have either Morgan Ballantyne or Jayda Clark for the year that would be my pick. Other than that, I like my team, so nobody, we are going to see how this journey finishes together.

10) Three words that sum up Craig Mansfield as a Coach?

At this point of my journey I’d like to think: Empathetic / Genuine / Adaptable

- Travis Young