Blog Three
Continuing to reflect on my weekly school visits I am sharing specific examples of what the best Directors of Sport are doing in their schools. This third blog focusses on Navigating The Middle Crunch: Leading Up and Leading Within
The Middle Crunch is one of the most distinctive and demanding aspects of being a Director of Sport (DoS) in an Independent School. It refers to the often-unspoken pressure of leading from the middle – managing both upward and downward influence while remaining true to your vision for sport.
Exceptional Directors of Sport don’t just survive in this space – they thrive. They are bilingual leaders: fluent in the language of whole-school strategy and equally at home talking pitch-side with coaches, staff and students.
Here’s how the best DoS practitioners I have seen navigate this middle ground with integrity and impact.
1. Leading Up: Proactive Engagement with Senior Leadership
Make Strategy a Shared Language
A common pitfall is waiting to be invited to the SLT table. Exceptional DoS actively seek opportunities to align sport with the wider school strategy – be it well-being, pupil retention, academic excellence, or character development.
Practical example: At a recent strategy day, one DoS prepared a short presentation connecting their new Year 9 leadership programme with the school’s development of ‘Future Ready Learners.’ They didn’t just report on fixtures – they told a story of how sport builds agency, resilience, and self-regulation. This re-framed sport as a key contributor to whole-school goals, not a siloed department.
Influence Through Evidence
Senior leaders respond to clarity, data, and outcomes. DoS who bring targeted insight – not just opinion – command attention.
Practical example: A DoS used student feedback and well-being data to propose a timetable adjustment that allowed more balance between sport, music, and academics. The key? They came with numbers, testimonials, and a potential solution – not just a complaint.
Be Curious About Their World
Understand the pressures and ambitions of your Head, Deputy, or Bursar. When you speak into their priorities, your ideas resonate more.
Practical example: One DoS scheduled a coffee with the Deputy Head Pastoral once a half-term to understand safeguarding pressures and pastoral patterns. It helped them better place their sports staff in tutor roles and proactively support students under pressure.
2. Leading Within: Clarity, Cohesion and Culture
Create Psychological Safety, Then Raise the Bar
Great DoS don’t micromanage – they coach. They build an environment where staff feel safe to fail and are inspired to improve.
Practical example: A DoS introduced monthly “teaching huddles” – 20-minute, informal sessions where staff share a success, a struggle, and a strategy. Over time, this built both trust and a shared standard of what ‘great’ looks like.
Lead With Clear Expectations
Vague expectations lead to misalignment. High-performing departments have clarity around what ‘excellence’ means in planning, delivery, communication, and care for pupils.
Practical example: One department co-created a one-page ‘Our Coaching DNA’ document, outlining shared expectations for training tone, match-day conduct, and parent communication. It wasn’t laminated and forgotten – it was revisited, refined and lived.
Grow Your People
Sport is about progress – and so is leadership. A DoS who invests in their team’s growth ensures they don’t plateau.
Practical example: A DoS created a shadow leadership team within the department. Aspiring Heads of Sport or experienced coaches were invited to lead on mini-projects – such as induction, feedback and differentiation– giving them purpose and progression pathways.
3. Extending Leadership Outward: Parents as Partners
Too often, sport is misunderstood by parents – either as merely elite performance or just a timetable filler. Leading in the middle means shaping this narrative too.
Practical example: Instead of just sending team sheets, one DoS used a termly ‘Sport Matters’ e-bulletin to explain why the school does sport the way it does – from mixed-ability participation to match rotation policies. The tone? Warm, insightful, and always linked back to pupil development.
Another example: At one school’s Year 7 induction evening, the DoS ran a parent workshop titled: “Sport at Our School – Beyond the Scoreboard.” It unpacked values-led coaching, growth mindset language, The Long Win and how to support from the sidelines. The feedback was overwhelmingly positive – and it helped shift conversations from results to relationships.
Final Thoughts: The Long Game
Navigating The Middle Crunch isn’t a one-time act – it’s a daily discipline. It requires emotional intelligence, tactical communication, and a deep sense of purpose. The best DoS don’t chase quick wins – they cultivate cultures that last.
When we lead up with clarity and conviction, and lead within with compassion and consistency, we create a sporting environment where students – and staff – don’t just perform. They thrive.
