The Future - do we have one?

[damienc]

Being a loyal supporter of this football club isn't easy.

It's a tough gig that's for sure.

When you look at our overall record from times past there have been more downs than ups and only one (count them) one premiership.

Ok. Here's my point: I get that we are not going to win many games this season. I understand we have an ageing list. I totally get the need to blood young players. In fact I thought the coach made some really good points after that heart breaking loss to the Weagles.

He was full of praise for Montagna and Maister and so he should. Both of them put in sterling efforts and sometimes things just don't go your way.

The coach says he longs for the time when the likes of Jack Newnes, Seb Ross, Josh Saunders and Jimmy Webster have several pre-seasons behind them and can make the sort of matchwinning impact late in games in the same way that Matt Priddis and Nic Naitanui did for West Coast. Amen to that

He also said there will bumps and bruises on the road to re-development and poor quarters and times when the players are flat. But have faith in them. Ok get that as well.

I just hope we are on the right track to one day have the success we quite frankly deserve. That we have made some good decisions on recruits after many bad years and neglectful stupidity.

In other words I am hoping that the current crop of young blokes are going to step up and be superstars. For me the jury is still out. I keep looking for signs and to be honest i am not seeing them. But maybe I am not looking hard enough or looking in the wrong direction. I am happy to be corrected.

And while I am at it,there are one or two other things that have also got me worried. Try as I might I just don't get why we are so interested in Mitch Brown.

I am sure we will get him if we want him. I'm just not sure that we should.

[mr six o'clock]

buck up little camper

of course we've got a future !

fortius quo fidelius .

[ausfatcat]

There is always always a tomorrow wether that is next year or ten years or 20 years from now there is a future

[paddy]

i think there is plenty to be excited about....

dont think we will win a flag with watters, but think he may just sort out the cattle that will play in it though....

[ace]

Carn the Wellington Saints.

[bobmurray]

The future for the Saints will resemble the past until the Academy bears fruit...

Do those academy things work....I mean...Australian cricket has one...and they don't have anything to brag about...

[dragit]

In other words I am hoping that the current crop of young blokes are going to step up and be superstars.

I don't think any of our current young blokes are going to be superstars, hopefully they will come in the next 2-3 years. Top 5 picks is where they are generally found… That said we have some very solid talent already at the club, but the 2 or 3 superstars are what's needed to rise above that middle pack of teams jostling for a top 4 spot.

Hang tight, or loose… or maybe just hang about.

[oh when the]

we need solid workers with good foot skills and hamils work ethic
more than superstars

[The Fireman]

of course we have a future...it's just not a very bright one....for the short term hopefully

[spert]

We will have a good chance of success in the future if the club does its business in a smart way. This is not necessarily a criticism of the current group, but generally speaking, from the top we need a smart passionate president and the right mix of people on the board, a smart innovative CEO, and a smart business plan for the future. A stable secure club has every chance to succeed. We need a smart coach, smart recruiters who recruit the right players for team balance, and recruit players with leadership skills and good work ethic. A couple of superstars might look good, but a good balanced team that can win in many positions across the ground wins finals.

For a club that has played in grand finals 09, 10 and played its last final in 2011, the backside has fallen out of the whole thing for reasons obvious, and the club got caught with its pants down. This situation is where smart, strong, innovative leadership is required and I'm not totally convinced this is in place at Seaford, but I really hope time proves me wrong.

[Beno88]

This club has really only had it's head screwed on properly in the last decade, the future is going to be a lot better than the past, I have no doubt.

[White Winmar]

In other words I am hoping that the current crop of young blokes are going to step up and be superstars.

I don't think any of our current young blokes are going to be superstars, hopefully they will come in the next 2-3 years. Top 5 picks is where they are generally found… That said we have some very solid talent already at the club, but the 2 or 3 superstars are what's needed to rise above that middle pack of teams jostling for a top 4 spot.

Hang tight, or loose… or maybe just hang about.

Nail on the head, Dragit. The fact is that over the past 4 years the draft has been terribly compromised, with you know who assembling as many first rounders on their lists in a few years, as most clubs can barely manage over a decade. That means the quality in what was left over was never going to come close to what it normally would be. Perhaps our position might actually help, as we are bound for a top 5 pick this year and the "position creep" that will mean the later rounds should also throw up more talent than in the past. At least things look like returning to normal, other than the activtion of compensatory picks.

As Dragit mentioned, none of our blokes look like potential superstars, although I believe White may end up one. So hang in there. The next couple of years will be hard, but may bear some fruit at the draft, as 2000-2 did. I know I'm being a tad naughty, but I still can't help comparing the way things are going now, to the Watson years. In the end, that turned out ok, but it did take a considerable amount of time. The one difference is that unlike Watson, SW looks likely to be in charge all the way through the rebuild. My only real concern is that sooner or later, the struggling clubs and yes, I count us amongst them, will run out of chances to "rebuild" and will have their futures determined by the AFL.

[evertonfc]

The club has some structural issues and football department issues that need addressing.

Not major, and not for mention on here, they just need a fine tuning. Some outside intervention wouldn't hurt to get things into an elite functional and development capacity.

We're victims of a few things - mostly to do with drafting and list management - but it wouldn't take that much to turn it around, in my view.

If managed correctly, we can make the finals in 2015 and be on a legitimate upswing from there.

[ralphsmith]

Rise and rise again, until lambs become lions.

Who in their darkest dreams envisaged we would play in 3 grand finals over 2 years when we were lurking on the bottom in the early 2000s.

Nobody in the universe knows what the future holds. There is always hope.