Source :- THE AGE NEWS
Cronulla assistant coach Frederic Michalak played 77 Tests for the French rugby team, but some of the greatest lessons in his career came from an Englishman.
Michalak played with World Cup winner Jonny Wilkinson for two seasons at French giants Toulon and saw the playmaker’s relentless quest for perfection every day, and what it cost him. Now the coach is determined to use those lessons to help Cronulla challenge for an NRL premiership.
“Jonny was a very professional guy, very obsessed with success, and above all he loved playing rugby; he was someone who tried to reach perfection, but perfection doesn’t exist,” Michalak said.
“I remember we played a game in Toulouse and he missed two penalties. At the end of the game, I remember he was crying in the changing room … it was really a desire to succeed, and it’s a bit of a disease.”
Wilkinson showed Michalak that relentless preparation could produce greatness, but now as a coach working closely with Sharks playmaker Nicho Hynes, he understands that the pursuit of perfection needs to be balanced with maintaining belief in your own ability.
“Nicho has had very high moments and very difficult moments, but he’s in a good mindset right now, so the important thing for him is to understand why he’s like that,” Michalak said.
“I have a lot of little discussions with Nicho, and he’s very curious, so it’s easy to do. He’s someone who is intellectually very good, he reacts very quickly, he studies the opponent very easily, he quickly sees the images on the field, too, and he scans [the field] very quickly.
“Now it’s just how he can influence others better … that’s what’s interesting for him now.
“I think with the pressure, he handles it very well. He’s someone who needs confidence – he’s a guy who needs it a lot – so I’m here to give 100 per cent confidence to the guy.”
Michalak arrived in Cronulla in July after Craig Fitzgibbon contacted him every two days to sell the dream of coaching in the NRL.
There are countless examples of former rugby league players who have excelled in rugby as coaches, including Ireland’s Andy Farrell and Wallabies coach Les Kiss.
Michalak is a rare example of a non-Australian rugby union coach who is determined to make a mark on the NRL. His arrival in July has neatly coincided with Cronulla winning five consecutive games.
Michalak has easily fitted in with the team and is popular with the club’s New Zealand contingent who regularly remind him of his alleged forward pass at the 2007 World Cup, which led to the match-winning try that knocked the All Blacks out in the quarter-finals.
Michalak conducts his presentations to the players in excellent English, but for this interview the conversation is largely conducted in French and translated.
His last coaching job in rugby union was at Racing 92 in Paris, where he worked closely with former Roosters star Joey Manu as that team’s head of attack.
‘He’s someone who is intellectually very good, he reacts very quickly.’
Frederic Michalak on Nicho Hynes
The former French five-eighth had previously done a short-term consultancy role at the Roosters through friend Trent Robinson in 2021, and had subsequently followed the NRL closely from France.
Michalak’s wife, Cindy, is Australian and grew up not far from Shark Park, giving him more time to spend with her family while also deepening his knowledge of the competition and the code he has come to love.
Michalak understands that it remains early days for him as a coach in the NRL, but he sees no reason why others cannot follow him from French rugby.
“I think there are a lot of French rugby union coaches who would like to do it [coach in the NRL], but either they didn’t have the opportunity, or they don’t have the courage to do it,” Michalak said.
“It’s true that you can sometimes have the feeling of being an impostor – you’re here, but you shouldn’t be here.
“I think that I’m sincere, and I always try to bring things that are interesting for the players.
“For me, it was the right time, now at 43 years old, to do it. I think I’ll go back to rugby union, and I’ll gain experience thanks to this.”
Michalak won a record six European Cups as a player in France, three with Toulouse and three with Toulon.
In both towns in France, becoming the best team in Europe is an expectation, not a desire. Michalak lived with that pressure throughout his playing career.
He also understands Cronulla’s deep desire to finally deliver in the finals and win a second premiership after the famous triumph of 2016.
“I think that very often, on the most important moments in the finals, it’s often the leaders and the top players who lead the team so that everything happens perfectly,” Michalak said.
“The goal is to get there and to be confident with a little fear, but also be confident because we will have been consistent all year to be the Sharks and to stay like Sharks.
“I think it’s something Fitz says a lot … the result is not important, it’s about the consistency of how we train and how we think, then finals are going to look the same.”
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