Updated 11.32 | Posted on 11.28
The return as head coach in the SHL lasted only twelve games.
On Sunday, Thomas Montaigne, 45, was fired from HV71.
As for Sportbladet, he now talks about the ad and the feeling of standing in the booth during the humiliating 0-8 loss to Malmo.
– He says: I am angry with myself and the whole situation.
Ever since HV71 announced that they were firing Thomas Montaigne, the protagonist himself has chosen to lay low.
Until now.
When the interview was finished, he went out for a walk:
-I have plenty of time now, he says and laughs.
He is not a broken man, but Thomas Montaigne, during his years as a coach, has built a strategy for dealing with the public.
-I have very little social media, and my only contact is with my close friends. I actually started turning off social media during the JVM era. I learned early on to stay away from that kind of thing. But we have many friends and acquaintances and they might read that written crap, then reach out to you and ask if you feel bad even though you didn’t read it yourself.
– It is difficult if it affects the family, but it is not my feeling that it might. Obviously, children grow older and have more control. We tried to talk a lot about it, even when I was in the national team, that what is said and written online is not always true.
During his coaching career that lasted throughout the 2000s, this was the first time Thomas Montaigne had been sacked:
I turned off the mobile phone and put the children to bed
– Last Sunday I spoke with the other coaches and planned Monday’s training. But at 8:00 p.m., Nobin (Athletic Director Kent Norberg) called me and told me there was a board meeting, which I understand he didn’t attend, and they came to the decision. It wasn’t a pleasant conversation for Nubben, but we knew each other well before and there wasn’t much to say.
How did you feel about the decision?
– In this case, the matter is settled, the decision has already been made and its case cannot be discussed. It would be different if you were called into a meeting and could tell things. What should we do, what can we do? I wouldn’t say I was sadder, more angrier and angrier. On the situation, but of course on myself because I didn’t make it better. We have mixed good games with very bad ones and I will never shirk this relegation at my peril.
What do you mean by status?
– I already knew from day one that HV is not the club that has reached the stage when it comes to the long term, rebuilding and building new. The hope was to gain some time and patience. I thought I would make it to November or December anyway, even though things went very poorly in the three games in Norrland. At the same time, I also understand that the pressure was great when you lose a game like that 0-8.
What did you do after the announcement?
– I turn off the mobile phone and then put my children to bed. Every now and then I would follow the same strategy I used when standing in front of a TV camera: if things went bad you got published, if things went well you got praised. I’ve always followed the strategy of finding balance, not too high or too low depending on what happens. Focused on family and children.
Thomas Montaigne’s two sons, aged 11 and 8, received the news directly from their father in the evening:
– One of the sons wondered if we could stay, if we had to sell the house. It was more related to anxiety and economics. I tried to explain that I still had the job but wasn’t allowed to be there.
Almost a mood of execution in the square
Did you manage to get some sleep?
-If there’s one thing I’ve always been bad at, it’s sleeping, no matter how things go. If I sleep five hours a night, that’s fine, I can deal with that. The only thing I felt Monday morning was a little anxiety. What should I do now, like? I didn’t do much that day, there were quite a few people trying to catch me. Many friends and colleagues have reached out to us.
What is unexpected contact?
– A football coach I do not know. Out of respect for the fact that we do not know each other, I do not want to mention his name. But at least he was by my side more than the club. He told his story of how he spent his time after being expelled. It was unexpected and appreciated.
Thomas Montaigne will make another attempt as a head coach in the SHL. The last time was in the 2012-2013 season when he coached the Timra team, which was relegated under Montaigne.
The athletic director at the time was Kent Norberg.
When Norberg had to appoint a new coach at HV71, Montaigne was chosen.
What was intended to be a successful encounter and revenge on Temra ended up being quite the opposite.
It became a mental crap match
Criticisms of Norberg and Montaigne came early.
-I love Nubben, we have been good friends for many years. My perception is that he saved HV last year when he rebuilt the team. I thought his photo in Jönköping was positive, but I did not receive that photo during the fall semester. This factor, that we have a personal relationship and have worked together before, may have been an additional negative. It was quickly felt that this was perhaps a pessimistic picture even before we started.
During Thomas Montaigne’s last match, the 8-0 defeat to Malmo last Saturday, the atmosphere was close to execution at Husqvarna Park.
– Don’t think too much about what happens around you from time to time. A lot of energy is spent keeping you calm, although in some situations you just want to get angry right away. But I don’t think I don’t think you’ll get anything out of it. This can affect the players a lot and make them smaller, they are only human.
Did you feel that the team did not play with you?
– No, I was asked this question after the match and I do not believe that any professional athlete loses intentionally. I think it was a bad mental game to get into, but it didn’t look good, we can agree on that.
Are you surprised that there was so much negative focus on you and HV71 early on?
– For my part, this did not affect my job, but rather my feeling. But to be honest, I think there are three clubs that have received an incredible amount of negative focus in the last 10 or 12 years, and they are HV, Djurgården and Brinas. Maybe it has to do with all the signs on the ceiling. Tradition exists and you want to be the superpower you once were and it’s probably hard to live up to it when you don’t have that job. It’s really the only Färjestad of the big dragons that succeeded and was incredibly good. Not that they were constantly at the top, but they also never hit the bottom.
The future is a question mark
On Tuesday, when the team had already gone to Malmö for the match, Thomas Montaigne was in Jönköping and unpacked his apartment and gathered his things in the Husqvarna Park.
– You don’t want to disturb the team in this situation, but I met the fitness coach and defender Oliwer Kaski, who is still not ready to play. We had coffee and talked a little.
Thomas Montaigne has a contract with HV71 this season and next.
How do you see your future?
– I haven’t landed on it yet. Now there are many question marks, I need to take a day and catch my breath, we’ll see. Tomorrow is a new day. I get more time with my family and I can do things I didn’t have time to do. I might travel more on holiday, I haven’t thought about it more purely in terms of work.
You do not rule out continuing in hockey?
-I still love this sport, but maybe I will have to think about it again. I’m not complaining or blaming, but I felt like the value of my income from the media – and where supporters were holding on to them – felt immediately reduced. It also probably reflects the next thing I might do. We’ll see, I’ll think twice. Be really careful and put myself more into what you jump into, no matter what it is. we will see. They say time heals all wounds.