On this episode we speak to Neil - Addington - Lefringhausen. A man who has plenty of experience integrating psychology in Scottish Football, spending 4.5 years as the academy psychologist at Celtic FC. As psychologists working in Scottish football, we take the opportunity to learn from Neil's experiences and consider the implications for our work but also for others supporting young athletes.

Working as a sport psychologist in any team environment can be daunting. We're thankful to Neil for being open on the challenges he experienced but also offering solutions. This includes discussion around fitting in to the environment as a psychologist, 'undercover' psychology with U9's, using ACT in academy football, the importance of coach buy - in and much more.

Currently, Neil works as a Sport Psychologist at the Scottish Institute of Sport, supporting athletes at an individual and team level across various sports. We also discuss this role and draw out the key differences and skills required compared to his time at Celtic.

Thanks to Neil for coming on!

Connect with Neil on LinkedIn:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/neil-addington-lefringhausen-28907b61/

Talking Points

1. Intro and welcome to episode (00:00)

2. Neil's journey in sport (3:20)

3. Academy psychologist at Celtic FC (10:25)

4. Immersed in the environment as a psych (20:22)

5. Engaging U9's - U18's (27:02)

6. Challenges with coach education (33:28)

7. Using ACT 'in the moment' (45:45)

8. Support wellbeing of players and staff (55:12)

9. Psychology in player development plans (1:04:13)

10. Sport Psychologist at the SIS (1:13:59)

11. Closing thoughts (1:18:08)

On our latest episode we speak to the brilliant Marketa Simova. Marketa is a Performance Lifestyle Practitioner at the UK Sport Institute. As part of her role, Marketa supports the wellbeing of Olympic level athletes in swimming and diving, most of whom competed at Paris 2024. We spoke to Marketa fresh off the back of the games (3 days to be exact) to deepen our understanding of performance lifestyle and the detail of support that is put in place to support the wellbeing of Olympians.

There is a bit of a blur around the difference between performance lifestyle and sport psychology. On the episode we sought Marketa's knowledge and experience to explore this in more detail. In doing so, we get a border picture of how an MDT operates in a high performance context. Other highlights include Marketa sharing the implications of her PhD research and the consequences of a toxic performance environment.

This acts as the second episode of season 4 that was recorded in the Leeds Trinity University podcast studio. Thanks to LTU as always for having us down and to Marketa for chatting with us.

Find out more about Marketa via the following links:

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marketa-simova-592438184/

Talking Points

1. Intro and welcome to episode (00:00)

2. Marketa's journey in sport (3:51)

3. The difference between performance lifestyle and sport psychology (11:03)

4. Mini case study (25:15)

5. 6 pillars of support as a PL (37:18)

6. Toxicity from media in sport (43:22)

7. Wellbeing of high performance coaches (45:49)

8. Toxic performance environments (52:49)

9. Closing thoughts (1:15:12)

On this episode we speak to the inspiration that is David Smith MBE. Without chatting to David, you'll likely know him as an athlete and for his triumphant gold medal win at the London 2012 Paralympic games in para - rowing. Chat or listen to him and you'll quickly learn he is so much more. David's story is massively influenced by his life changing health challenges. In 2009, in a routine check, a tumour was discovered growing in David's spinal cord.

At the point of recording David has went through 7 spinal surgeries. He was forced to retire from competitive sport in 2016 when he was paralysed from the neck down during surgery. He has faced death more than most human beings and experienced massive physical and mental changes to who he was once as an athlete. On numerous occasions he could've thrown towel in, but David finds himself in round 14 of the fight and going nowhere.

On this episode David shares various experiences and skills that reveal how he has coped with his challenges. This includes seeking support in the form of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) and living this in his day - to - day life. It involves drawing on psychological skills taught from sport (e.g. resilience, discipline) and importantly surrounding himself with the people that matter most to him. On a rollercoaster of a journey, David now finds himself on the Young Player Wellbeing Podcast - inspiring us and hopefully all of our listeners.

Thank you David.

David's details below. Please connect with him!

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidsmithmbe/

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-smith-mbe-108a0719/

Talking Points

1. Intro and welcome to episode (00:00)

2. David's unique intro (4:38)

3. David's journey in sport (11:46)

4. Emergency surgery and it's impact (26:09)

5. Sport as an escape (46:47)

6. A conveyor belt of athletes (58:53)

7. Closing thoughts (1:19:12)