Q - Please can you introduce yourself
Jason Withe age 42. I'm an ex professional footballer having played for West Bromwich Albion, Burnley, Crewe Alexandra and Stockport County. When I finished playing I went into coaching, working for Birmingham City and Aston Villa. I then moved into coach education, delivering FA qualifications. I got the opportunity to become the head coach for Bec Tero Sasana FC and steered them to their first league championship. I also assisted my father with the Thailand national team during their most successful period. I then moved to Home United in Singapore, where I steered the team into 2nd in the league, before returning to Thailand as technical director and then head coach of Bangkok Bank. I then worked as assistant national coach for the Indonesian national team and U23 team for 3yrs before moving back to the UK, where I was academy director for Aldershot Town FC and then director of football for Leicester City girls & women. I am one of the highest qualified coaches in the world of football and a coach educator. I have applied myself to a lifelong education of improving myself as a coach and manager.
Q - What is your current role at PTT Rayong?
I am currently assisting Peter with the 1st team, this includes coaching, scouting opposition & potential new players. Although I'm not contracted to the club as I am on the market for any new head coach position that might arise in the region.
Q - What does this role involve?
My role involves the day to day coaching with the 1st team and planning opposition scouting and possible recruitment of new players. The coaching is then linked into strengths and weaknesses of opposition teams we are about to play.
Q - How easy do you find working with your dad?
Not a problem at all. We have very similar ideas on how the game should be played and we get on very well. I assisted Peter with both the Thailand and Indonesia National Teams in the past so it's not new to work together. My reason for being here is to find my own team to manage and Peter knows this, so it helps both of us. PTT Rayong FC have been very helpful with this also.
Q - Please can you describe a typical week's training schedule
We like to plan in advance so myself and Peter will have watched the opposition play at least twice. We will then draw out a game plan on what we need to work on to play that particular team.
Q - How are the PTT players responding to your methods?
This is a big transition for not only the players but also the club. It's their first season in the Thai Premier League so as always things take time to adjust but we are happy with the response the players have shown and the support from the club.
Q - How have you had to adapt your methods to suit the local mentality?
We have both coached in Thailand for around five years previously and both myself and Peter have had great success with working with Thai players in the past both internationally and domestically. We both understand how to bring out the best in Thai players and we have a real grasp of the Thai culture and mentality of players here.
Q - Do you think that Thai clubs train too much?
For me it's about intensity at the right time. I took time out while I was in the UK to watch Arsene Wenger working for three weeks at Arsenal preparing his team for both Premier League games and Champions League games. This not only gave me an insight into Arsene's philosophies but how he trains players leading into key games. I have applied these ideas into my own philosophy and coaching practices. You can get the same intensity in a one hour session rather than dragging out a coaching session for two and a half hours. Your coaching practices need to be game related and linked into your overall game-plan.
Q - Do you think playing friendly matches during the season in place of training is a good idea?
Planning for the long term as well as the short term is vital for any team but you have to take into account players’ fitness levels. If you are carrying a big squad, players need to have match practice, so playing practice games for that reason is really important. Playing practice games to replace training for me is a waste of time. Coaches need to have a real understanding of fitness and especially recovery of players and getting players to peak at the right time is the key to having a successful team.
Q - How does having foreign players in the squad help with coaching Thai players and introducing new ideas?
The key element for me is bringing in the right foreign player - who has the same mentality as the head coach - to improve your team. I also work for a company called Scout7, covering Asia, which has the biggest data base of players in the world. Scout7 is being used by the biggest clubs and associations mainly in Europe and South America so when signing a player we hold all the player’s real appearances and videos of games he's played in. So if you have quality foreign players who have played at good levels Thai players can hopefully take some of these ideas into their own game. If Thai players compare themselves against these players, who might have played at a high level elsewhere, and they can be better, then why not have Thai players going to play in other leagues around the world?
Q - What are the major differences between football in Thailand now and when you were here before?
My initial observations are the differences of the fan base for each club. This is a real improvement on the past. Although football has always been the number one sport in Thailand, it was only the national team that had big support for games but each club is run more professionally now and they see the importance in tapping into the local community. On a playing side, the Thai players have become physically stronger and players have seen the importance with regards to fitness. Although the league has improved, what has really disappointed me is the position of the national team slipping down the FIFA rankings and not even being the number one team in South East Asia. Both myself and Peter worked extremely hard in raising the standards in Thailand while we coached here for five years and when we left the national team declined and have yet to reach the standards that they reached in the past, which has been a great disappointment to both myself and Peter.
Q - What are your opinions on how you've started the season?
The club has seen some major changes in a short period with regards to new coaches, players and finding themselves in a new league. It is important to put the foundations down first and build slowly. We have been impressed with the players’ response to training so this season will be a big learning curve. If we take last Saturday’s game against Suphanburi, who finished 4th in the league last season, it was a very even game with both teams creating chances and to be honest the game could have gone either way.
Q - What will be considered a successful season for PTT Rayong?
For any team entering a new league, the first season is all about stabilising the club, learning and then moving the club forward after that. The biggest problem for the league is that 5 teams get relegated this season, which is losing a third of your teams and I don't see this as being productive to the Thai Premier League.
Q - Which TPL teams have impressed you this season and why?
I'm going to have to be brutally honest and say I haven't seen a team that has blown me away. In fact, I haven't been over impressed with any teams. I'm yet to see a team play with a real identity and a real threat and totally dominate a game. I have seen plenty of individuality but not a team playing as a team. I believe the league is very open this year and any number of teams could be challenging.
Q - Which players have impressed you and why?
I have seen most teams this season and I watched Bec Tero Sasana play against Chonburi on Sunday. Iwas impressed with Tero's striker Georgie, who looked a real handful. I was also impressed with Darko Tesevski in the Bangkok Glass midfield.
Q - What are you expecting from Saturday's match?
I'm expecting a hard game. We will have a game plan and if we stick to this we will make it difficult for Chonburi.
Q - Without giving too much away, what will your approach be on Saturday?
I was very impressed with the Chonburi strikers on Sunday and I know Pipob very well - he was my player at Bec Tero when I was head coach, in fact it was me he gave him his Thai Premier League debut. He is still a very dangerous player who puts defenders under pressure all the time so we will be trying to stop these first of all.
Q - What are your impressions of the Chonburi team/squad?
Having watched Chonburi play against Bec Tero on Sunday, I also watched them play at home on Wednesday against Bangkok Glass. Against Tero, Chonburi scored in the first half against the run of play. They have two wingers who can cause problems and this combined with two very quick strikers, Chonburi can be a real threat. Therefore, containing these players will be key to getting something from the game. My old striker at Bec Tero, Warrawut is assisting coaching the team and I'm sure he will be looking to get one over on me and Peter at the weekend.
Q - Which Chonburi players have impressed you and why?
Chonburi like to play through the thirds and I was also impressed with both central midfielders on Sunday. They look to receive the ball under pressure, mixing their passing up and playing into strikers’ feet or getting the ball out wide.
Q - Where do you think our strengths are?
A very structured 4 4 2 formation, defending well as a unit and making it very difficult for opponents to break you down. I would have to say both strikers are very mobile and quick and when you have pace upfront that will always be a threat to any team.
Q - And our weaknesses?
Chonburi is not the biggest of teams and against Bec Tero, Chonburi really struggled with set plays, especially corners.
Q - Anything else you'd like to add?
I'm looking forward to a good game this weekend. I always enjoy watching teams and putting an evaluation together on how to contain and win the games. It will be good to see my old players; Warrawut, Pipop and Therdsak. Let's hope they all have an off day!
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