Matt Mazevski has been a Flame Senior Men’s player since our Club commenced in season 2018.  Matt’s experience and leadership over his career has earned him the Captain’s armband at various times throughout his playing career.

I took some time to speak with Matt about what it’s like to be a team Captain and what advice he can offer to our young players who might be tasked with the Captain’s armband.

I started by asking Matt what it means to him to wear the Captain’s armband.

Matt: It’s an honour because I was one of the first players signed at this club when it started and here 9 years later, I am trusted by coaches and players to lead the team and set a high standard.

That’s a massive honour and recognition of your commitment, dedication and leadership to be given the responsibility of team captain. What do you feel is your biggest responsibility as Captain?

Matt: There’s a few big responsibilities as team captain, building a positive culture, earning respect and motivating the team but for me, my biggest responsibility is to lead by example, everything else builds from that.

It’s not an easy job, your setting the example, you have all of your team mates looking to you for guidance, you are trying to motivate the team, build the team culture and still play your own game.  With all of these things going through your mind, does being Captain impact your game and/or the way you play?

Matt: Yes, in someways because you are worried about keeping everything good on the field and when the game isn’t going your way there is pressure to stand up and try and change the game and that can lead to mistakes.

That’s definitely a lot of pressure to deal with. Finding strength within and maintaining focus must be challenging. With that in mind, when you add to the mix a challenging or difficult game, what do you do to remain calm and stay focussed on leading your team?  How do you keep working to turn the game around or to continue to strive forward until the final whistle?

Matt: Hard games and difficult times are normal in football and it happens all the time but good teams ride out those moments together and fight through it and that’s what I try to do with my team, I constantly tell them to battle together, ride the wave and wait for the momentum to swing back our way. Half time is also a good time to get everyone together and regroup before going out again and/or a good old fashion self-accountability check-in goes along way, especially in senior football space.

Some great advice, you’re a team and you have to work together, fight for each other and be patient.  Keeping the focus of the team positive, even in the toughest games, is solid advice.  You also have yourself to consider when games are challenging, how do you maintain motivation?  Who do you look to for inspiration in these situations?

Matt: Definitely the senior boys in the team, 100% I’ll say Nenad is a great leader in our team and if I’m not barking orders you know he is and also anyone really who does something good on the field, it lifts me up seeing someone score a goal or rip someone 1 on 1 or even make a big tackle.

So, having other players in the squad who have leadership qualities are a great source of inspiration.  Those moments when the momentum starts to swing back, as you say, with great team play, individual skill or players putting in the big effort to get the result are all moments that provide the motivation you need to stay focussed and positive.

It’s great that you have players in your squad with experience and leadership qualities that add to helping the team drive forward each week.  Over your playing time, you must have experienced playing with many different players and other team captains who have had many different qualities and leadership styles, are there any pieces of advice you have received that have helped you to become the Captain you are today?

Matt: I once spoke to someone I highly trust in football and they told me, “you don’t have to have all the answers, just be someone people can trust” and ever since I heard that it changed my perspective on being the Captain because I was hell bent on making sure everything ran well and that I played every game at the best of my ability but in reality I was putting too much pressure on myself.

Sounds like the advice you were given has contributed greatly to your growth in the leadership space.  Advice that has enabled you to not let the responsibility of your role impact your game and has put things back into perspective for you.  The Club has a number of young Captains, some stepping into this role for the first time, what advice would you give to these young players?

Matt: My advice would be lead by example of course and always put the team first. Earn respect through your actions, support your team mates and never be afraid to ask for help or learn from other leaders around you.

I think there is something that everyone can learn from your advice. I particularly like the point you make in saying ‘never be afraid to ask for help’. When you have the Captain’s responsibility, I’m sure it can be overwhelming at times.  I imagine there would be times when you have doubts or you aren’t sure how to move forward. As you said previously, it’s ok that you don’t have all of the answers, all of the time, so asking for help, could be a way of confirming what you were already thinking or could give you a totally different perspective of how to deal with whatever situation you find yourself in.

It’s not an easy role for anyone to have, along with the personal challenges, how you manage the role, the overall responsibility for the team, being Captain must provide a roller coaster of highs and lows throughout a season.  In summary, tell us about your best moment as a Captain during your football career?

Matt: I would say last year around mid season, we had just lost a game 7-3 to a team coming 3rd last and it was a huge reality check. Our form leading up to that game wasn’t the best either. The first training session of the next week, I called a players only meeting to self-reflect and take accountability as to what happened and to make sure something like that will never happen again. We then set some goals as a team for the remainder of the season which included, goals for, goals against and how many points we wanted in 5 game blocks. The next 5 games we had the following results: 5-0 W, 6-0 W, 3-0 W, 6-3 W and 4-1 W. That for me was the best moment as a team captain seeing the reaction from the team after the meeting.

What an amazing turn around!  Certainly an awesome highlight and fantastic achievement, initially to self-reflect and then to empower the team to own the changes that they wanted to see for the team moving forward. From this moment, I can see that being a Captain isn’t about just focusing on today’s game and that one moment on that one day on the weekend and it’s not just about one person having to take all of the responsibility, all of the time. You can plan with your team, set short term goals and long term goals with your team, although you are one Captain, you are still a team player and your actions in your role allow you and your team to support each other.

Thanks Matt for taking the time to provide an insight into what it’s like to be a Captain, some of the challenges that you have faced, the achievements that you have experienced and the advice that you have provided.  I hope that those who are reading this will be inspired to learn from those around them, take advice when offered and ask for help when needed.  It’s certainly a challenging role to lead your team but it can also be an extremely rewarding role too.  I wish you all the best for the season ahead.