The call interrupts the Sportliv interview. Rikard Grönborg wife Dawnie to call and declare that you have to take your family to the dog’s vet. Rikard must do so to apply for the oldest daughter Chloe from school.
Everyday life runs while Tappara goes hard. Then the work offers asylum – despite occasional scheduling changes and unexpected calls.
“The involvement of the family on this trip means everything to me,” says Grönborg, whose wife and two daughters moved with her to Tampere less than two years ago.
The previous three champion and regular season winner finished ninth in this year’s regular season. The debut season’s praise has changed to critical comments.
– I can’t come to the dressing room stressed. The situation will only get worse if I sit there frustrated and irritated.
See Sportliv’s mini -documentary from Rikard Grönborg In Arena or below.
“Hockey is everything in all Finland”
Benches are a new acquaintance for Rikard Grönborg.
The streets flooded with truck pallets and children collected by the high-end trucks when Grönborg drives through his daughter to school through Tampere.
Daughter Chloe, who plays hockey in Tappara’s U13 boys team, can follow the afternoon coffee. Grönborg is on his way to meet one of his Tampere friend.
Grönborg has been familiar with Tampere decades ago, which was one of Tappara’s attractive factors. One of the friends is Ron Grönlund.
In the café, two Tappara fans will ask for a signature. This happens quite often, Grönborg says. However, today more people ask for selfies.
Grönborg says that Finnish ice hockey culture has always fascinated him. As a child a defender star Reijo Swedish was his idol as well as Modon’s 70s profile Mikko Leinonenwho has become known as Tappara’s long -time leader after his career.
In the streets of Tampere, Grönborg constantly meets people who want to talk about hockey with him, and the same thing is repeated as the family travels on the Swedish ship.
– Sweden also has passion and fire on hockey, but not on the same scale. In Finland, in practice, one hundred percent of the population is in some way committed to hockey. Ice hockey is everything here.
One prejudice, which has proven to be true, applies to Finnish mentality. As Sweden grew up, the eastern neighbors were described as hard -working and frank people.
– It’s really true. If I tell the players that we are doing this now, everyone is 100 % involved. No objections. The work ethic is fantastic.
Grönborg became the first foreign head coach last season in the SM League for sixteen years. At the end of the season, he was awarded as coach of the year with a prize named another Tappara champion coach Kalevi Numminen by.
Grönborg piloted Sweden for two consecutive World Cup gold 2017-2018, and has been named after several NHL rumors over the years.
After Tre Kronor, however, he moved to the Swiss ZSC Lions and from there to Finland. Grönborg has made conscious career choices for the best of the family.
– The reason for moving to Zurich was that I was able to spend more time with my family and sleep in my bed every night. There have been quite a few jobs I have refused because I couldn’t have done so.
Now he spends his evening in his daughters’ hobbies next to a hockey rink or in a horse stable. It allows you to step out of the treadmill and get a distance to work – especially when the ice goes poorly.
– If you are completely alone, you can sit and spin things all night. The presence of a family is incredibly important so that I can become a balanced leader for the players.
Wanted to confuse the homogeneous coach soup
“We have Europe’s best faculties, this is almost NHL level,” Grönborg praises as he guides Sportliv at Tappara’s premises in Tampere Arena Uumen. Three ice baths, modern video equipment, traditional walls.
These traditions attracted Grönborg to Tappara, and last spring he led the club to the Finnish Championship gold number 20. It is four more than all time, local competitor Ilves.
Time and time again, Grönborg emphasizes the organization, the vision, the staff, the process, the team. He is accurate that he does not emphasize himself, but underlines the importance of “The Big Picture”.
– It is very common in sports to make emotional decisions, and then the end result is usually not good. Look at me and what rounds I go after the match. But when I get to sleep overnight, I make better decisions.
According to Grönborg, this also describes Tappara as a company.
– There is a clear vision. Of course, it can and should be calibrated, but you can always trust that the big steamer will continue in the same direction.
Hiring Grönborg was a kind of calibration. He describes the Finnish coach college as extremely skilled and familiar – but at the same time homogeneous.
“Five Guys in a Picture” is something that most Finnish coaches preach a lot. Let’s work together and play tightly.
I wanted to mess up this setting and bring more active thinking here. More spinal cord where players can make their own decisions on the ice.
Changes have also brought friction. Grönborg says that a group of experienced players knocked on the door of his room at the beginning of last season. They wanted to know why the winning concept was being changed.
– They said they didn’t understand what we were doing. What do we really do? This led to one of the best discussions we have had.
The players eventually accepted a new direction, and at the end of April the ax was celebrated in front of the home audience in front of the Canada.
Last season also included a heavier episode, with just two matches from eleven. However, the problems of this season have been different caliber.
After the worst of the year, Tappara lost ten matches from eleven after the turn of the year. And the course has not turned to the new goldmine after that.
The reigning champion ended the regular season by winning seven out of fourteen, and defeated Kiekko-Espoo in the first round of the first playoffs with a 3-2 win.
Hockey fans want to see passion
There are several reasons. Inefficiency in goal scoring, an uncertain goalkeeper game, and according to Grönborg, the most important thing is too full of sick.
– Our game philosophy is a lot based on chemistry, and as we have to constantly change the line -up, it is reflected in the game.
As a coach, he emphasizes the importance of moderation and concentration in this situation.
I can’t start thinking about what other people think and say. It is completely irrelevant for what we do.
According to Grönborg Michael Jordan Inspiring quotes on the walls and demanding players to work harder.
It’s old -fashioned thinking. That is no longer enough. We need to do better and deeper analyzes, to be able to identify problems and provide concrete solutions.
Although Grönborg emphasizes the importance of the coach’s poker face in the dressing room, he is aware that his own feelings are sparkling during matches.
His repeated discharges, in particular towards the judges, have been reported throughout his coaching career, and last season he was fined EUR 10,000 after barking at the League referee leader.
Grönborg, 56, admits to being hot.
He says he has mostly been in trouble when he, in his view, has been treated unfairly.
– Then I step up and fight for them. Sometimes maybe too hard, but I don’t feel like I have any selfish purpose in the background.
He sees the task of defending his players. And as a result, it also takes care of the aftermath.
– As a leader you have to endure it. It is my responsibility to be the person who focuses on.
One major source of criticism in Grönborg in Finland has been not always very salon-friendly. He himself says it is a lot because he communicates in English.
It makes it particularly alarming because it is something new. The language of Finnish coaches is also not particularly good, but somehow it has been accepted.
At the same time, Grönborg sees the benefits of letting emotions sometimes take power. He says that a passionate Finnish hockey audience wants to see a passionate coach.
– People want to see emotions, they want to see passion. This is something that is important to them. It’s important to me, it’s important to players. Then you have to get your feelings.