University of Staffordshire's Performing Under Pressure Podcast

Jack McMillan is a former professional footballer who has dedicated his second career to supporting professional athletes on a holistic level. His specialisms include breathwork and yoga, and he has worked with over 60 professional football clubs and organisations including the PFA and Great Britain.

Joining Jack and host Dr Paul Mansell in the studio are two of Jack's clients. Former professional footballer Jake Jervis and Luton Town and Scotland forward Jacob Brown shared their experiences of working with Jack and more broadly, how breathwork and other strategies have helped their performance and wellbeing.

Jack describes the science behind breathwork and underlines the importance of maximising something that we all do 20,000 times per day. We discuss the role of the out-breath, the link between breathing and our physiology, and how other strategies such as yoga, meditation, and grounding can support the psychology of athletes.

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Dr Andrew Wood is a HCPC registered sport psychologist with a specific interest in Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy. He has worked with many businesses and teams as well as previously holding lecturer positions at the University of Staffordshire and Manchester Metropolitan University.

Joining Dr Paul Mansell in the studio as a co-host is England blind footballer Azeem Amir. Andrew worked with Azeem during his time as the team's sport psychologist. Andrew reflects on what it is like to work in para sport and how adopting rational rather than irrational beliefs can facilitate performance under pressure.

Andrew also candidly speaks about his experiences of long Covid. In an emotional and enlightening episode, Andrew shares how he coped with some incredibly dark times, and we should warn listeners that there is a discussion about topics that might be upsetting.

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Kelly Massey is a former 400m and relay athlete who has represented Team GB at the Olympics, World Championships, European Championships, and Commonwealth Games earning multiple medals throughout her career. Alongside her many years at the training ground, Kelly also taught Physical Education and Dance full-time at secondary school level. Now, Kelly lectures at Liverpool Johns Moores University whilst also completing her PhD exploring all things maternity/motherhood and sport. Joining us on our Stoke-on-Trent campus at the University of Staffordshire, Kelly discusses the pressures of training at Olympic level and her current research with host Dr Paul Mansell and co-host Laura Jackson de Domene.

In this episode, Kelly shares practical advice from her experience behind the scenes of athletic training, highlighting the importance of joy and fun with teammates. She describes the importance of the support team surrounding an athlete being ‘on board’ with a common goal. Kelly also shares her research-informed views on the culture of training environments and wider society in the experiences of athletes navigating fertility, pregnancy and motherhood and evolving identity.

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Rhian Cleverly is a defender for Rugby Borough Women FC. She has previously played in the WSL, Championship, and she has been capped for Wales. Rhian also has a master's degree in sport and exercise psychology.

In this episode, Rhian describes the routines that she adopts to aid performance under pressure and how she is able to bounce back from adversity. There is a focus on the culture that has been created at Rugby Borough through initiatives such as 'family meals'. Rhian is a passionate advocate for the advancement of women's football and she describes what life is like in the game having played at a range of levels.

This episode was recorded for in aid of Dementia UK - we thank Rhian for her generous donation.

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Kate Richardson-Walsh was the captain of Team GB women's hockey side that triumphed at the Rio 2016 games. She's been capped a record 375 times for her country. Kate was awarded an MBE in 2016, an OBE in 2017, and was nominated for the BBC Sports Personality of the Year in 2016. Alongside guest co-host for this episode Helen Richardson-Walsh, Kate and Helen were the first same sex married couple to win an Olympic gold as part of the same team.

In this episode, Kate describes the importance of vulnerability as a leader and how this may create a sense of togetherness. She explains how she has dealt with the ups and downs of her career, and she reveals the key question that helped her to move on from one of her most difficult moments. We also discuss the behaviours and actions required to be a gold medallist and how this may instill ruthlessness in a team. Finally, Kate explains how she navigated the transition into retirement from being an athlete.

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Dr Karla Drew is a Lecturer in Sport and Exercise Psychology at the University of Staffordshire. She is a former Team GB heptathlete and since retiring, has gone on to complete her HCPC sport psychologist accreditation. In this episode, Dr Paul Mansell and co-host Nika Pavic facilitated a conversation with Karla about her experiences across those three different domains.

Karla explained her recent experiences in applied research, such as the role of mentoring during the transition from academy to senior football. She explains how she was able to perform under pressure as an international athlete, such as reflecting on her use of visualisation. We also discussed some of the cornerstones of her work as a sport psychologist including the appropriateness of self-disclosure.

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Ben Williams is a triple jumper who represented Team GB at the Tokyo Olympic Games. The Staffordshire-based athlete is also the former World Youth Champion. In this episode, he joins host Dr Paul Mansell and co-host Meg Baldwin to discuss his approach to performing under pressure.

Ben describes the importance of having a coach who you can trust, as well as the criteria for people to be in his inner circle. There is a section called 'How do you deal with...', and this features conversations about dealing with success and performance slumps. Ben also explains the 'flea in the jar' analogy and underlines the importance of 'rejection is redirection'.

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Dr Phil Clarke is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Derby and a HCPC registered sport psychologist who has worked in over 30 different sports. Phil joined hosts Dr Paul Mansell and Jason Wright to discuss performance under pressure through the lens of his research and applied practice.

Much of Phil's published work has centred around 'choking under pressure' and 'the yips'. Phil explains the factors that can predict the breakdown of skilled performance and how we may negate those issues. We discuss the role of self-compassion and grounding techniques in performance, the need to add pressure in training, and effective practice when working with teams and individuals.

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Mark Roberts joined Dr Paul Mansell and Dr Katie Sparks in the studio to discuss performing and leading under pressure. Mark has played 700 games in his professional football career and has represented clubs including Fleetwood Town, Stevenage and Cambridge United. He captained Fleetwood and Stevenage to promotions and won the FA Trophy with Stevenage during their rapid ascent up the Football League pyramid.

In this episode, we discuss how Mark was able to perform under pressure during his career and how he used various psychological skills as part of his preparation. We also discuss leadership and how it is important to be authentic. Mark now works as a mentor with numerous Football League clubs and he describes the value that this can have for young players as well as for himself.

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Greg Leigh has represented Jamaica on over 20 occasions including playing in the Copa America. He began his career at Manchester City's academy and has since played for numerous clubs including Bury, Bradford City, Aberdeen, Ipswich Town, and Oxford United. In this episode, he explains to Dr Paul Mansell and Dr Andrew Wilkinson about how psychology influences his performance.

Greg outlines the role of luck in determining an athlete's career and how he once had to take matters into his own hands when transferring between clubs. Greg highlights the differences between playing in the Championship and at international football, and the need to cultivate an identity beyond being a footballer. As a young player, Greg describes the lightbulb moment of learning that thoughts, feelings, and behaviours were connected.

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