Wealthy St Kilda figure Gerry Ryan and former coach Grant Thomas endorse Larry Benge to join Saints board

[Devilhead]

GT is a sort of Winston Churchill figure. Pretty obnoxious in times of peace but perfect if you want to shake things up and inject some fighting spirit.

As such, he should be used wisely.

Let's hope that in 2022 we're not (a) physically unprepared; (b) mentally unprepared (players going missing, etc); (c) riddled with injuries; (d) prone to erratic performances.

If that happens again, why not unleash GT?

Why not indeed. Wherever he gets involved, there appears to be success involved. So what if he upsets a few people

The alternative is we leave Finnis in the job another 9 years...Or...

Why not let Lethlean make those fabulous decisions he's been making. He's built his reputation on good decision making hasn't he....oh hang on!!

Some posters have twisted the argument and introduced the coach into the equation here. This is not about the coach or Libba. This is about Finnis and Lethlean

As far as the specifics that you mention regarding injuries to players and some of our guys not performing or not fronting up at the start of the season in peak condition...

Once again these events are due to the fabulous decisions made by Finnis and Lethlean and more specifically the people they employ and the trades they endorsed

What success did GT ever have with the Saints?

A Wizard Cup Premiership ...... ?

Talk about twisting the argument

[Scollop]

We were bottom of the ladder when he took over at St Kilda and the club climbed the ladder and became a serious challenger. Fact

He was a huge factor in St Kilda being taken seriously and we enjoyed a winning a culture. Fact

GT was mentor to the talent and the captaincy rotation was a brilliant innovation that symbolised team ethos. Fact

The players were passionate and loyal under his leadership. We had a lengthy period of success and he was part of the blueprint... his legacy lived on. Fact

“He’s got a really good lens on what constitutes a strong culture, what constitutes strong leadership,”

“He has St Kilda at heart. You know, you could never question his desire for St Kilda to be a great football club. He’s super passionate about it."

"So I think the motivation level is high, the expertise is really, really strong.”

Nick Riewoldt

[bigcarl]

We were bottom of the ladder when he took over at St Kilda and the club climbed the ladder and became a serious challenger. Fact

He was a huge factor in St Kilda being taken seriously and we enjoyed a winning a culture. Fact

GT was mentor to the talent and the captaincy rotation was a brilliant innovation that symbolised team ethos. Fact

The players were passionate and loyal under his leadership. We had a lengthy period of success and he was part of the blueprint... his legacy lived on. Fact

“He’s got a really good lens on what constitutes a strong culture, what constitutes strong leadership,”

“He has St Kilda at heart. You know, you could never question his desire for St Kilda to be a great football club. He’s super passionate about it."

"So I think the motivation level is high, the expertise is really, really strong.”

Nick Riewoldt

Well said. Those were exciting times and both he and Butters - both divisive figures - drove them.

[asiu]

if Confucius said ... good guys finish last ,
he was an idiot

[Vortex]

There seems to be a view that Thomas would come back to the club for only altruistic reasons because he has money but that might be far from reality especially if he is planning to secure a board postion which you would assume would be nothing less than Prez. Generally these positions are desirable amongst the elites for access and status reasons alone which a postion on an AFL board brings. Thomas also has a score to settle with the AFL so he is also looking to stroke his healthy and oversized ego.

Is the dentist a business man also?...or aspiring business man?

[Vortex]

And another thing.....

Thomas says there are problems at the club, what exactly are they according to him? Has anyone heard him outline the problems or his detailed plan on how he intends to fix them?

[Scollop]

The main problem is that St Kilda Football club and our Moorabbin facility at RSEA Park has 1 Premiership cup

We are the only remaining Victorian Club who has just one solitary flag in nearly 150 years of our history.

[Vortex]

The main problem is that St Kilda Football club and our Moorabbin facility at RSEA Park has 1 Premiership cup

We are the only remaining Victorian Club who has just one solitary flag in nearly 150 years of our history.

It's a really hard thing to know HOW to fix it isn't it? The easy thing is quote the obvious like Thomas has, and now you.

Where is the meat on the bone, how is Thomas proposing to fix the problem? That is what he needs to he held to account to before members let him get any further than a grandstanding moment.

I must admit though I don't mind him stirring the pot even though he hasn't offered a solution because I'm hoping it just adds a bit of pressure to everyone at the club to keep up on their toes so if that is the outcome of Thomas's 15 minutes of fame then it can't be a bad thing.

[asiu]

the 'issue' is
that a disrupter needs to point out the obviousness
of the need

that the Entity succeeds
as all the aspects of that Entity , are aligned

[asiu]

every bird has two wings

just gotta suck that obviousness up , as well

[takeaway]

We were bottom of the ladder when he took over at St Kilda and the club climbed the ladder and became a serious challenger. Fact

He was a huge factor in St Kilda being taken seriously and we enjoyed a winning a culture. Fact

GT was mentor to the talent and the captaincy rotation was a brilliant innovation that symbolised team ethos. Fact

The players were passionate and loyal under his leadership. We had a lengthy period of success and he was part of the blueprint... his legacy lived on. Fact

“He’s got a really good lens on what constitutes a strong culture, what constitutes strong leadership,”

“He has St Kilda at heart. You know, you could never question his desire for St Kilda to be a great football club. He’s super passionate about it."

"So I think the motivation level is high, the expertise is really, really strong.”

Nick Riewoldt

I think Nick's comments are fair enough, especially as the comment was made in the context of him endorsing GT to sit on the Saint's Coach Selection Panel in 2019, when actually Ratts had the job anyway. Pretty safe comment, and GT no doubt is a passionate Saints man with high motivation. Would Nick endorse GT to go back to the Saints in a highly influential role? That is another question entirely.

Your various statements of "fact", except the first, and a bit of the second, are, in fact, opinion.

[Scollop]

Ask Nick and see what answer you get

As for the semantics re facts vs opinion...it's easy to ignore the work of previous coaches and development people and administrators when things are going well...but ask yourself this:

Can you ignore the damage from Lyon after he departed? Can you ignore the damage that Pelchen and Trout did during their tenure?

[asiu]

the 'issue' is
that a disrupter needs to point out the obviousness
of the need

that the Entity succeeds
as all the aspects of that Entity , are aligned

now
for any budding trolls 'n trogladytes out there



your best reply is

so its a vibe thing then






whilst i wait patiently for someone to back in
'good guys finish last'

with an understanding that holds water

[Sanctorum]

Course Ratts is under pressure. One year left on his contract. Clarko available in 2023.

I hope he has a super 2022. Seems like a terrific bloke. But, as Confucius say, nice guys finish last.

Ahhh, so this is history repeating???

Thomas beats his chest about getting Clarko, offers him more money than god (after due diligence of course), then realises early in his first year that Clarko could not give a fat rat's about St Kilda. Clarko is sacked leaving the Club a monster bill. Thommo finds himself the only one in the powder room with his hand up when they ask, "Who's gonna coach us now?"

[asiu]

the 'issue' is
that a disrupter needs to point out the obviousness
of the need

that the Entity succeeds
as all the aspects of that Entity , are aligned

and i've also shared this before

to encompass the disruptive / steady as
(the very nature of any Entity)

one employs the Observer

(who does nothing else but observe ,
where ever the f*** he wants to observe
AND when ever he chooses to so do
across the Entity)


wings work in unison

the Observer articulates his
understandings via observation
when appropriately requested

: given intent of the original agreed arrangement(s)



it's really , not that hard

collaboration not competition made manifest

[Vortex]

the 'issue' is
that a disrupter needs to point out the obviousness
of the need

that the Entity succeeds
as all the aspects of that Entity , are aligned

and i've also shared this before

to encompass the disruptive / steady as
(the very nature of any Entity)

one employs the Observer

(who does nothing else but observe ,
where ever the f*** he wants to observe
AND when ever he chooses to so do
across the Entity)


wings work in unison

the Observer articulates his
understandings via observation
when appropriately requested

: given intent of the original agreed arrangement(s)



it's really , not that hard

collaboration not competition made manifest

Confucious say:

Man who paint toilet
Not necessarily sh!thouse painter

[Teflon]

Bad luck with injuries was the only reason we didn't win a flag under GT ...

This is the 2004 prelim vs Port on their home turf, and in front of their parochial fans, this was how close we came.

FINAL SCOREBOARD
PORT ADELAIDE 4.0 8.3 10.8 14.10 (94)
ST KILDA 4.5 7.5 10.9 13.10 (88)


Hamill missed this crucial final (with his "2 week" injury), Kosi played injured and Goddard was badly injured and went off in the first quarter.

Port went on to smash Brisbane in the GF.
That should have been us doing that to Brisbane.

Don't tell me we wouldn't have beaten Port that day had Hamill played (instead of the useless Guerra who managed 2 kicks for the whole game and was only in the side because of Hamill's absence) .
Hamill was built for the finals - we would have been a 6 goal better side had he played and run away with that game - even in Adelaide.

Ross Lyon prioritised player management when he came in cause he knew what it took cause he had been in the AFL system at successful clubs before
Thomas did eff all - gave a corporate nave to “Training Services” (sounds like something out of the 70’s FFS) and did eff all to argue to resource it appropriately
Did blow 300 k on a STH African junket so he could mould young boys into mirror image of himself though...
Don’t whinge when he did nothing to be sure up non contact related injuries through improved strength and conditioning

[shanegrambeau]

the 'issue' is
that a disrupter needs to point out the obviousness
of the need

that the Entity succeeds
as all the aspects of that Entity , are aligned

and i've also shared this before

to encompass the disruptive / steady as
(the very nature of any Entity)

one employs the Observer

(who does nothing else but observe ,
where ever the f*** he wants to observe
AND when ever he chooses to so do
across the Entity)


wings work in unison

the Observer articulates his
understandings via observation
when appropriately requested

: given intent of the original agreed arrangement(s)



it's really , not that hard

collaboration not competition made manifest

Came across something like this before…
Observe the dissonance, watch the bombs drop, and the town burning down, and the babies screaming, the insanity and panic…

Calmly observe, and ‘sit with the uncomfortableness of it’

Actually, GT doesn’t mind a bit of da old Buddhist sayings I would hazard a guess.

But Buddha was no fan of Confucius …or who knows? Says not much about anything!

And life is competitive…

Awful
Just awful

“He was a good man. God rest his soul”

We say at the funeral..

Repent! Repent! Repent!
We say before it..

Luckily, we are Saintly and float deliriously above all this nonsense down below.

I worry we are so Saintly.

[Ghost Like]

To asiu & shanegrambeau, I dips me lid. My brain is obviously stuck on AM with tram tracks nearby. You two are well and truly on higher wavelengths, some kind of supercharged 5G DAB FM

[asiu]

no

coz if the bombs are falling
its time to act
not observe

pull one of those kids out of danger
then get on your bike
and save two

[asiu]

(it's more ... tuning in the receiver) for me

gaz bows

[shanegrambeau]

no

coz if the bombs are falling
its time to act
not observe

pull one of those kids out of danger
then get on your bike
and save two

Then it comes back to asking what is good and what is bad pain? We are back where we started?

Why are we so triggered?

Anyway, as usual, there are so many disorders and sources of grief it is easy to slip into a a nihilistic fog, and hide under the rationalisation of just sitting quietly

I think it comes down to being competitive…we are wired for it, and yet we are somehow also one, like a giant auto immune disease! lol. That makes us survive?

I heard a Navy Seal talk on a podcast this morning…he was nuts…telling us how we shouldn’t judge them and their cause.

I wonder if we will ever reach the kind of consciousness that led to Vietnam protests and the like, or whether we also need to think like black and white, 0 and 1 , dominant and submissive etc., just to survive! Geez

[asiu]

when one is out of their head (thoughting)
and operating via Heart
one KNOWS what do
as required

'n none of the other crap exists


coz
it was self generated illusion
in the first place

[meher baba]

Teflon: "Ross Lyon prioritised player management when he came in cause he knew what it took cause he had been in the AFL system at successful clubs before
Thomas did eff all - gave a corporate nave to “Training Services” (sounds like something out of the 70’s FFS) and did eff all to argue to resource it appropriately
Did blow 300 k on a STH African junket so he could mould young boys into mirror image of himself though...
Don’t whinge when he did nothing to be sure up non contact related injuries through improved strength and conditioning"

That's your version of history: which you must have previously posted only about 350 times on here.

Another version of what happened is that the club made a significant investment in injury management in the Butterss-GT era: so much so, that the St Kilda setup was featured on the ABC TV science show (Quantum or Catalyst: I'm not sure which it was at that time).

Sure, despite what efforts were made, our team was particularly prone to soft tissue injuries. It was said by knowledgeable people at the time that all the clubs which played regularly on the slippery Docklands surface at that time were experiencing similar problems for the same reasons. I suspect that the surface got a bit better as the decade wore on, which helped our injury list considerably.

Anyway, some of the key injury problems which destroyed our premiership chances in 2005 and 2006 were not soft tissue ones: eg, in 2006, Kosi (smashed in the head by Gia) and Lenny (ACL, just when he was starting to play his best ever football).

My recollection is that Lyon brought in someone who was supposed to be a super duper "conditioner": a rather vaguely-defined profession which I think might have encompassed the work of the guy who provided "supplements" at the Bombers. As I recall, the club and this bloke (and Lyon too?) later had a falling out.

Do you have any specifics as to how Lyon exactly improved injury management in his time at the club. Or was it just that he sprinkled about the magic pixie dust to which you believe he has exclusive access?

[Mr Magic]

Lyon brought in Dave Misson