Mark Zimmermann's bravery cannot be questioned.
He lives deep in Randwick territory but that hasn’t stopped him getting around that part of town in Marlins colours, antagonising the locals ahead of Saturday's big game.
Mark is used to getting inside people's heads.
He is a mindset and performance coach for leaders in sport and business through his On The Mark coaching programs and proven models.
He has been working with our Marlins and Mermaids this year after being lured over the bridge from the Wicks, where he worked with their Elite Development Pathways players as a mental skills coach last year.
"We talk about motivation levels, confidence levels, anxiety levels, performing under pressure, controlling emotion…all of this those things that have an impact on performance" Mark explained.
"In rugby we all seem to focus on the hardware, which is strength and conditioning, building strong physical bodies, a strong team, a strong forward pack etc.
"But it doesn't matter how many times you train or go to the gym if you can’t get the software (mindset) to align with the hardware, you cannot perform consistently well under pressure or when it matters most".
"It's one thing to do all the physical work in a training environment and another to perform in front of a big crowd when the pressure's on.
"We use our own bespoke mental skills model called The MPT Method, which focuses on Mindset, Performance & Team."
The players have been extremely responsive, with many attributing their sessions with Zim for improving their mental strength and on-field performances.
But it's not only rugby players who can benefit.
"I'm also a qualified and experienced business coach, a leadership coach and a life coach," the South Africa-born Zimmermann pointed out.
And you can add "proud Marlins sponsor" to the CV.
Check more of Mark's story and the services his company provides at: https://otmcoaching.com.au/
