In this episode, Luke, Martin, and Rob dive deep into the parent-child dynamic in sports, exploring how post-game conversations, expectations, and communication shape young athletes' experiences.

🔥 Topics covered:

• 🚗 The "Car Ride Home" Dilemma – How post-game conversations can impact a child’s confidence and love for the game.
• 🧠 Managing Expectations – Why high parental expectations can lead to pressure, disappointment, and performance anxiety.
• 🎤 Parenting Styles in Sports – Lessons from Luke and Martin’s experiences with their fathers and how it shaped their approach.
• 🏆 Academy Pressure vs. Joy of the Game – The dangers of putting status over development in youth football.
• 💬 Effective Communication – Small language shifts can make a huge difference in supporting young athletes.
• 🎭 Role-Playing Parent Responses – Practical scenarios on how to handle post-game emotions and conversations.
• ⚖️ Balancing Coaching & Parenting – How to avoid over-coaching while still being a supportive parent.
• 📖 Future Plans – Luke’s vision for a children’s book series on life lessons in football and an upcoming masterclass at Sunderland’s training ground.

Your words as a parent or coach can fuel confidence or create pressure—learning how to communicate effectively makes all the difference.

Listen now and if you want to take your child's journey to the next level, apply for them to be mentored by Luke & Rob inside the Inner Game Academy by clicking the link below.

https://rob294920.typeform.com/innergameapply

In today's episode, Luke & Rob discuss how hard it is to be your true self in and around new environments.

We discuss:

• The importance of staying true to oneself
• Luke's personal story about maintaining authenticity despite teasing from teammates
• Not changing or losing oneself to fit in
• Luke's experience of losing authenticity on the football pitch
• A valuable lesson learned from the experience
• The importance of self-discovery
• Luke's journey of questioning his identity and rebuilding himself

Our Brand new 6 Week Pro Accelerator program has now started and we'd love to help you give you the best chance of becoming a professional footballer, all you need to do is to go to:

www.innergameprocourse.com

To see the details and apply, limited spaces are available.

If you liked this podcast please, subscribe, review, and share this with your friends.

In today's episode, we talk about expectations.

One of Rob's favorite sayings is "Expectations will screw you" so how do we get a handle on our expectations are they a good or a bad thing?

We discuss:

• Are expectations good or bad
• What were Luke's expectations and how they made his performance suffer
• Why Luke thought he had to perfect
• Why you need to change your language

Our Brand new 6 Week Pro Accelerator program has now started and we'd love to help you give you the best chance of becoming a professional footballer, all you need to do is to go to:

www.innergameprocourse.com

To see the details and apply, limited spaces are available.

If you liked this podcast please, subscribe, review, and share this with your friends.