Some athletes follow one path. Angus Yeates has followed several and made each one count.

From state field hockey in Tasmania to competing overseas in Germany, from seriously pursuing the PGA pathway in golf to building a career with Adidas, Angus has navigated change with a calm confidence that defines this conversation.

This episode is about adaptability. About leaning into opportunity. About carrying the discipline, resilience and perspective that sport builds into whatever comes next.

We explore the shift between team and individual performance, life overseas, balancing ambition with study and work, and what it means to redefine success as your life expands.

Field hockey, golf, and beyond — this is a story about staying open to what’s next.

In sport we talk about mindset, discipline and resilience. But what happens when stress and trauma are shaping performance beneath the surface?

In this episode, we’re joined by Emily Kile, physiologist, PhD candidate in psychology, founder of Workzbe and author of Bitter to Better. Together, we explore how the brain and nervous system respond under pressure, why coping can quietly become a performance strategy, and what post-traumatic growth really looks like.

We unpack how trauma shows up in high-performing environments, how identity can become fused with performance, and how meaning-making and neuroplasticity allow us to revisit memories and move forward differently.

Whether you’re competing, coaching, leading or navigating life after sport, this conversation sits at the heart of what Almost Pro is about. Understanding the human behind the performance.

CHAPTERS

1. Understanding Trauma

2. Band-Aid Strategies in Sport

3. Post-Traumatic Growth

4. This or That

   
   

Learn more from Emily:
Website: https://www.workzbe.com/
Book: Bitter to Better

Almost Pro isn’t about what you didn’t become.
It’s about who you’re still becoming.

In Part 2 of our conversation with Dr Damien Taylor, we continue unpacking the six-part infrastructure that underpins sustainable high performance.

Following Part 1’s focus on sleep, nutrition, and exercise, this episode turns to the remaining pillars: quiet time and rest, environment, and community.

These elements shape how we regulate ourselves, make decisions, maintain standards, and sustain performance over time — particularly under pressure and through transition.

Drawing on decades of experience across elite sport and high-pressure leadership environments, Damien explains how strengthening your internal operating system determines how consistently you show up when it matters most.

This is Front-End Leadership™ in action. No shortcuts. No hype. Just practical, evidence-informed principles for those committed to building resilience and real excellence over the long haul.

Connect with Dr Damien Taylor:
Website: https://www.betheleader.org/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-damien-taylor-phd-adjunct-professor-founder-director-732b90168/

In this episode of Almost Pro, we are joined by Dr Damien Taylor, a global leadership researcher and performance practitioner with decades of experience in elite sport.

This episode is Part 1 of a two-part series exploring the six foundations that support high-performance athletes, not just in competition, but across their entire sporting journey.

In Part 1, we focus on the first three foundations:

• Sleep
• Nutrition
• Exercise

Damien explains why these foundations sit at the core of performance, recovery, decision-making, and consistency under pressure, and why overlooking them often leads to burnout long before performance breaks down.

This series is relevant for athletes, coaches, parents, and anyone looking to become a high-performing leader in sport or life.

Join us next week for Part 2 as we continue the series, exploring quiet time and rest, environment, and community, and what really sustains performance over time.

Explore more from Dr. Damien Taylor:

Website: https://www.betheleader.org/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dr-damien-taylor-phd-adjunct-professor-founder-director-732b90168/

About Almost Pro:

Almost Pro explores the journeys of athletes, performers, and leaders, and what shapes them long before the moment anyone sees.Subscribe and follow to catch Part 2.

Early specialisation is becoming the norm in youth sport but is it actually helping young athletes or quietly doing more harm than good?

In this episode of Almost Pro, we unpack one of the most debated issues in modern sport the pressure to specialise early. From year-round training and talent pathways to rankings and selection, early specialisation is often framed as the only way forward. But what does the evidence really say?

This isn’t about a one-size-fits-all answer. It’s about asking better questions, re-centering joy in sport, and reconsidering what success really looks like for young athletes.

🎧 Listen now, join the conversation and let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

🌎 www.almostpropodcast.com

What happens when tennis breaks free from tradition?

The Australian Open is back, and this year it is doing things a little differently. From record crowds to bold entertainment ideas, the Happy Slam continues to shape its own identity within the Grand Slam landscape.

In this episode of Almost Pro, we step off the court and into the heart of modern sport to explore what makes the Australian Open unique, and why its approach to innovation matters far beyond Melbourne Park.

We talk about:

• Why the Australian Open has leaned into innovation while respecting tradition

• Naomi Osaka’s iconic centre-court fashion moment

• The new million-dollar shot format and what it reveals about fan engagement

• How elite-level innovation flows down to kids, clubs, volunteers, and communities

• What this shift could mean for the future of tennis and sport more broadly

  
  

This conversation is not about results or scorelines. It is about identity, expression, entertainment, and permission, and how elite sport quietly tells us who belongs and how we are allowed to show up.

🎧 Hit play and join the conversation.

We’re kicking off our first guest episode of 2026 with a story that captures everything Almost Pro is about: family, community, commitment, and the people behind high performance sport.

In this episode, we’re joined by Dave Jones, who shares his family’s journey through shooting, from discovering the sport to becoming deeply involved at club level, and ultimately supporting his daughters through the pathway to elite competition. Along the way, Dave found himself wearing many hats as a parent, coach, referee, fundraiser, chauffeur, and constant supporter.

This conversation goes beyond results. It explores the long drives, the tough calls, moments of burnout, the role of community clubs, and what it really means to show up for your kids in sport year after year.

If you’ve ever been part of a sporting family or wondered what happens behind the scenes of elite pathways, this episode will resonate.

Follow Almost Pro for more untold stories:

🌐 Website: almostpropodcast.com

📲 Follow us on socials: @almostpropodcast

This week, before we kick off the stories of 2026, we wanted to take a moment with you to look back on the year that was and launch the first episode in our Best Of series — celebrating our 2025 most streamed episode.

In August 2025, we released our first-ever guest episode with Phil Stewart — an episode that quickly became our most streamed of the year and our end-of-year chart topper.

Phil’s story is the definition of Almost Pro: the moments that shape you, the pressure you don’t always see, and the reality of chasing something at the highest level.

In this conversation, Phil reflects on elite gymnastics, the challenges that come with it, and the moments that changed everything — both in sport and beyond it.

Whether you’re listening for the first time or returning to a favourite, we hope this episode lands just as strongly as it did the first time.

In this special New Year’s episode of Almost Pro, we explore what New Year’s resolutions really look like in sport.

For many athletes and those working behind the scenes, seasons don’t pause at midnight and expectations don’t reset with a new calendar year. Decisions about pushing on, slowing down, or letting go are often shaped by much more than January 1.

This conversation is an invitation to reflect, rather than rush into change. Whether this year is about another season, an honest reset, or a new chapter, your reset doesn’t have to happen on New Year’s Day.

Happy New Year. Here’s to 2026, with or without resolutions.

👉 Follow Almost Pro and never miss an episode:
🌐 Website: almostpropodcast.com
📲 Follow us on socials: @almostpropodcast

🎄 Christmas Day Sport: The Reality Behind The Tradition

While most people switch off over Christmas, for some sports it’s one of the biggest times of the year.

Do athletes actually get Christmas off?
Who’s working behind the scenes while the rest of us rest?
And what does tradition really cost the people delivering it?

In this Christmas special of Almost Pro, we pull back the curtain on Christmas Day sport — from the athletes on the field to the invisible workforce making it all happen.

Whether you’re watching, working, or training through the holidays, this episode opens an honest conversation about a side of Christmas sport we rarely stop to consider.

👉 Follow Almost Pro and never miss an episode:
🌐 Website: almostpropodcast.com
📲 Follow us on socials: @almostpropodcast