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Peter Withe: The rock-n'-roll Timnas coach
JP/Arief SuhardimanIn 2004, the Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) turned to Englishman Peter Withe to revive the fortunes of the Indonesian national soccer team (Timnas)
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JP/Arief Suhardiman
In 2004, the Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) turned to Englishman Peter Withe to revive the fortunes of the Indonesian national soccer team (Timnas). In the second of a two-part series, Withe speaks about how, after jetting into Jakarta, he traveled the country searching for new Timnas stars, and reveals how his tenure as Indonesia's soccer boss remains an unfinished book.
Having settled into his role as the Indonesian national soccer team (Timnas) manager, Withe scoured the entire archipelago looking for new talent, which he said was particularly lacking in the striker department.
The role of striker was a position Withe knew inside out ' in his playing days he had scored 193 goals, some at the highest levels of club soccer. In Indonesia though, given the number of foreign players occupying striker positions at club level, a quality Timnas striker was hard to find.
At first he looked to see if could bring in players of Dutch descent eligible for Indonesia, but his efforts were stonewalled by the country's rigid citizenship rules.
Those rules have since been relaxed, incidentally, given the inclusion of Nigerian-born Greg Nwokolo and Victor Igbonefo as well as Dutch-born Sergio van Dijk, Irfan Bachdim and Raphael Maitimo in the national squad.
Withe brought aging striker Kurniawan Dwi Yulianto back into the national fold to plug the gap alongside the now-legendary striker Bambang Pamungkas, who went on to become Indonesia's all time top scorer with 37 goals.
'We could see Bambang was a talent,' said Withe. 'He was small but he had a gymnast's body that gave him tremendous spring. Whenever he did shooting practice, he was technically brilliant at striking a ball.'
Bambang said that the players were happy with Withe's style.
'He was a coach who talked directly to his players regarding his decisions,' said Bambang. 'I remember when I was dropped from the 2004 [Tiger Cup] squad, he called me and gave his reasons. I think any player would really appreciate that.'
According to Bambang, Withe used to tell the players to believe in their own abilities, which lead to the national team playing with a lot of confidence.
'He always told me to never be afraid to take decisions in front of goal,' said Bambang. 'He was a rock-n'-roll type of coach, giving us the freedom to do anything off the pitch, as long as we gave 100 percent on the pitch. Withe was one of the best coaches the Indonesian national team has ever had.'
Perhaps the real gem unearthed from Withe's scouting exploits came in the form of Ilham Jaya Kesuma.
'No one had heard of Ilham but I went to watch him play and I saw something in him,' Withe explained. 'He went on to become a real force for us.'
From relative obscurity, Ilham was catapulted to national fame and was the top scorer in the 2004 Tiger Cup with seven goals.
Withe also tried to instill a philosophy in his players more reminiscent of present-day Barcelona than the traditional English long-ball game.
'The idea we played a direct style was a myth. We looked to get the ball down and play it, always looking for the pass,' Withe said. 'When we had the opportunity to press teams, even if it was [Asian powerhouses] Japan or South Korea, then we did it. We looked to put teams under pressure with exciting soccer that people could enjoy and even to this day I still get messages from Indonesian supporters saying the way the team played then is the way they want to see the team play today.'
Nutrition was also on the coach's agenda.
'We had to improve their fitness levels starting with changing their diets,' he said. 'They found it difficult to press for whole matches as they didn't have the carbohydrates in their bodies. It was a case of telling them, 'if you eat this, you're only going to last for 70 minutes, but if you eat this, you'll last for the whole match'.'
On the pitch too, there were changes. Withe, who in his playing days was managed by some of the European game's most well-known motivators, such as Brian Clough and Bobby Robson, set about trying to improve his players' mind-sets.
'It wasn't defeatist but it was a mentality where they thought they would get to a final and then lose,' he said. The recent U-19 team's success aside, some would say that mentality still exists today.
'I tried to change things by giving the players a positive front and also by putting in the hours off the training pitch. I was very hands on.'
Withe also found the national team's training facilities were not up to scratch. The squad had to use a pitch in the Bung Karno Stadium complex that Withe said 'wasn't the best in the world'.
'Indonesia has some beautiful stadiums, so we took the squad training around the country instead,' he said. 'It worked well, as we could also meet the supporters in each city we went to and also put on coaching clinics there. That wasn't part of my brief but I did it anyway to improve the game.'
On managing in Asia, it was a whole different ball game.
'In Indonesia, the FA asked me to wear many soccer hats,' he pointed out. Withe said he did everything ' training sessions, fitness coaching, goal keeper coaching, completing tactical preparations for matches, taking care of the paperwork for matches ' for the senior team, the U-23s, the U-21s and U-19s.
'People don't realize how big these national jobs [in developing countries] are. Basically the country wants to use your experience as much as possible.'
Withe had two assistant coaches, and, having learnt a little Indonesian, managed to get his messages across to the players.
However, his time as national boss ended in 2007 when Indonesia failed to get out of its group in the ASEAN Football Championship and was cruelly knocked out on goal difference, despite finishing level on points with group winner Singapore.
'We didn't lose a game in the championship and we played well, but sometimes in tournament soccer you don't get what you deserve,' he said.
Unfortunately for the Englishman, having made a statement prior to the tournament that Withe would be sacked if he did not reach the final, Indonesian Soccer Association (PSSI) chairman Nurdin Halid was reportedly left with no other option than to relieve Withe.
'I think to a certain degree he was forced into making that statement,' said Withe. 'But in the end he made it and he had to follow through with it, no matter how well we'd played. Indonesia is still an unfinished book for me. When I look back, I felt we were getting there but my tenure was cut short,' he said.
Nevertheless, today 62-year-old Withe still has good memories of the time he spent in Indonesia. 'I went all over the country to watch games and the fans were phenomenal,' he said. 'We played to a full national stadium, with flares going off and everything. It was superb support. I only wish I'd had the chance to play in front of those fans.'
Today, Withe is based in the UK and is helping colleagues in the game with coaching and scouting work. This year, he refreshed his coaching license. So would Withe ever welcome a return to coaching in Indonesia?
'I have a lot of coaching experience at club and national level, so if someone wants me, pick up a phone,' he said. 'I've still got a lot to offer soccer.'
