Why I'm happy

[cannavaro17]

Firstly I can't believe that amount of BS about Watters and his staff. Wow I'm a self proclaimed novice when it comes to AFL but my eyes tell me he is doing a good job.

In 18 months, Watters & Pelchen have:

1. Kept us competitive.... you can't win them all and at the end of the day if we stay competitive... what more do you want. We watch the game for fun and to see our team get close is great because its a 'competition' sure we arent winning at the moment but I firmly believe everyweek we build a little tank and experience into our young kids. This will help us win in the long run. But please tell me... would you rather lose by 50 (alla collingwood) to sydney or by 14. So this tells me that we are consistently competitive against a range of oppoenents (i know this is only one crude example)

2. List Management - The young'uns and coming through. In 18 months we have the following players playing and improving:

-Ross
-Wright
-Newnes
-Hickey
-Roberton
-Webster
-Siposs
-Saad
-Simpkin (Albeit, he has not done well this year, does anyone know the full story IE injuries etc.)

They have got the following players taking more responsibility and doing well for long periods

-McEvoy
-Steven
-Armitage
-Geary
-Gilbert

They have gotten a new lease of life out the following:

-Riewoldt
-Montagna
-Gwilt
-Demptster

They have exposed the following kids to the game and in my opinion they have not looked out of water:

-Saunders
-Murdoch
-Lee
-White


Next draft, if they can bring in some quality with picks 3,23, 39 and a Free agent... then very quickly we are going to have a squad of 20 or so players that are young enough to be around at our next tilt, display good work ethic on the pitch and keep me interested for years to come. On top of that we will have another 4 or so drafts to refine our list before the next peak.

3. Our style. I personally like the way we play now and we seem to kick lots of goals.

I'm going to continue to support Watters and the Saints. I'm still happy. I don't think if we had won last night it would change the above.

I want to be carefuly with how I say this and at risk of sounding like a hypocrit but some of the comments on this place is really detracting me from coming on here... all the BS about sack this guy and that guy because watters hasent delivered a cup Please..... no one can deny we are moving fowared!

I think we all need to stay positive and support our Club.

Oh yeh... don't think i'm a spring chicken that hasnt been around for less that 30 years either...... not as long as some but long enough to have seen a lot worse and a lot less strategic direction.

Go Saints!

[Bernard Shakey]

Good post and I agree with most if not all of it.

[Cairnsman]

Yeah good post. And I can't believe the calls on SW. Anyone asking for him to be sacked has no idea.

[southernsaint]

Spot on, great post

[Beno88]

Very refreshing. Completely agree.

There's been some poor onfield efforts this season, but we are well and truly on the right track.

[markp]

Well said, I agree.

The future is very promising, and the present isn't as dire as many paint... we have some really exciting prospects developing before our eyes.

And as shocking as it was to lose to the dogs, we're better off finishing 15th than 10th.

[borderbarry]

I agree.

[lloyd21]

I also agree .

Scott Watters is for me too , would still have liked to beaten dogs to but at end of the day, it does not matter this year have thought that day one .

Trust me go to Sandringham game and go and see White play, give him 2 years without injury X factor .

Have same feeling about Siposs too give them time guys.

[fugazi]

I think Geelong (and also the Swans - though salary cap asterix next to them) are the freaky exception to the rule that you have to go down the ladder before you go back up.

We have to have a year like this....we just need to make the most of the list we have, and get games into the youngsters, and rebuild while we still have good senior players.

We should make sure Lenny goes round again for that purpose, and trade Dal for someone good at years end.

[SainterK]

I don't understand the freaking out.

The only areas I've expressed concerns is in some of pelchens football decisions, and Scott picks players regardless of structure and I'd rather he set that up first.

Scott though, has got a lot out of guys and instills confidence in the kids, it's still early days.

[vantheman]

nice to see some perspecive and positivety
i was starting to think that I was alone in wearing the rose coloured glasses
lots of excitement, expectation and enjoyment watching this evolution unfold

[Stillwaiting]

I don't understand the freaking out.

The only areas I've expressed concerns is in some of pelchens football decisions, and Scott picks players regardless of structure and I'd rather he set that up first.

Scott though, has got a lot out of guys and instills confidence in the kids, it's still early days.

I agree with what you say, the only thing that does worry me will be the ability of Watters to keep the confidence in the young players going forward if we don't see some success. Hopefully he can do that and do the same with the kids that will come to the club in the next 2 drafts. If the club and the supporters can show some faith we might have a chance of success

[Cairnsman]

Very refreshing. Completely agree.

There's been some poor onfield efforts this season, but we are well and truly on the right track.

Spot on, there have been some poor efforts but that will happen with a young and developing list but the worst thing we can do is be so 80s or 90s in our thinking and blame the coach. It is 2013 and we have to mature as supporters and put the pressure on the new players coming into the side and let them know that we expect them to work hard. We have to also keep the pressure on the older players also and let them know that we expect them to work hard right up until they clock off for the last time.

Hard work is what we have been about over the past decade and that culture needs to not only be maintained but improved upon and just blaming a coach after a loss just lets everyone at the club off the hook.

SW needs at least another 18 -24 months, at least and don't forget, he's learning too.

[dals_da_bomb]

I havent posted in a looong time, but i wanted to say i enjoyed reading your post. Gave me a smile - which I have found a little hard to do this season.

Im not sure where I stand on SW. I would like him to stay, maybe would prefer some new assistants around him, but im the first to confess i have a very very limited idea on who those new people will be - so I guess I should have little opinion.

[SaintPav]

If we won on Sat would we be having this conversation? That is the upside.

It reminds me of a quote in Fight Club (the book) which I have just re read.

"Only after disaster can we be resurrected. It's only after you've lost everything that you're free to do anything. Nothing is static, everything is evolving, everything is falling apart".

It's a very funny book.

[SainterK]

but im the first to confess i have a very very limited idea on who those new people will be - so I guess I should have little opinion.

Since when does that stop any of us?

[st_Trav_ofWA]

I agree with what you say, the only thing that does worry me will be the ability of Watters to keep the confidence in the young players going forward if we don't see some success. Hopefully he can do that and do the same with the kids that will come to the club in the next 2 drafts. If the club and the supporters can show some faith we might have a chance of success

remember the guys like Lenny Roo Kosi Milne all came to the club when wins were as rare as hens teeth ... just getting games into the kids is enough to keep the confidence up for them after all they want to be playing footy above all else ... the fans is the worry after a pretty successful era some of our members/fans are finding it hard to move on and accpet the position we are in (posts on here about sacking blah blah and trading blah blah and throwing cash at blah blah.. is proof of that)

[WinnersOnly]

No one has suggested that he is not doing a reasonable job developing the kids - its the games we should have won that worry me about WATTERS coaching!

Against the Bulldogs we were getting slaughtered out of the middle which was putting far too much pressure on our back line (the Saints had the exact same issues against Adelaide the week prior) - yet he failed to attempt to stem the flow.

We needed a bigger body around the contests why not throw Fisher or Dempster onto the ball to play on Boyd. McEvoy was having a terrible game yet he was left to do nothing in the middle with Hickey rotting in the forward pocket. Jones (WB) was doing nothing so why not even throw Stanley forward or into the ruck. Clinton Jones was disgraceful again and the those signs were seen early why not rotate him and Geary. Dal Santo was giving us nothing put him back onto a back flank and put someone like Geary in the middle who could give us some drive.

Moves like rotating players like GWILT and SIPPOSS in the second half when neither were having an impact.

His influence on the players the club brings in like TDL have been very questionable? When Armitage went down he had a chance to bring in another younger player rather Jones but elected not to which was another selection error.

There is endless match day and selection examples like this every week - this is the reason I have major concerns regarding WATTERS coaching abilities.

[st_Trav_ofWA]

No one has suggested that he is not doing a reasonable job developing the kids - its the games we should have won that worry me about WATTERS coaching!

Against the Bulldogs we were getting slaughtered out of the middle which was putting far too much pressure on our back line (the Saints had the exact same issues against Adelaide the week prior) - yet he failed to attempt to stem the flow.

We needed a bigger body around the contests why not throw Fisher or Dempster onto the ball to play on Boyd. McEvoy was having a terrible game yet he was left to do nothing in the middle with Hickey rotting in the forward pocket. Jones (WB) was doing nothing so why not even throw Stanley forward or into the ruck. Clinton Jones was disgraceful again and the those signs were seen early why not rotate him and Geary. Dal Santo was giving us nothing put him back onto a back flank and put someone like Geary in the middle who could give us some drive.

Moves like rotating players like GWILT and SIPPOSS in the second half when neither were having an impact.

His influence on the players the club brings in like TDL have been very questionable? When Armitage went down he had a chance to bring in another younger player rather Jones but elected not to which was another selection error.

There is endless match day and selection examples like this every week - this is the reason I have major concerns regarding WATTERS coaching abilities.

just on that there is no coach in the world who doesnt make mistakes ....
2009 we lost games to Essendon and North both games we should have won ... that happens its all part of footy otherwise footy tipping would be a bloody easy thing to do ...

selection is based on many things and the selection committee would have far more detailed information on who is best suited for what role ... that said selection mistakes are made by every coach from time to time ... not just by scotty ...

moves during the game again are easy to see what needs to be done from the couch or the stands but the fact remains we dont know all the details we dont know who is running on empty and that a move would blow them up at this stage we dont know what the instruction before the game was to some players about tasks that they are wanted to carry out ... but again every coach have their moments when they back their plan to come good in the end regardless of what is going on ... Every coach has at some stage been guilty of sticking to the wrong plan for too long or not making the move soon enough or at all ...

we lost and have been losing so the spotlight from us fans does go to scotty but the fact is he is no differant to a Worsfold Lyon Malthouse or Clarkson when it comes to making mistakes ... the possitives are still by far out weighing the negatives

[SainterK]

Selection errors this week, not match day errors

[WinnersOnly]

St Trav the moves I suggested should be his 'bread and butter' and are what you would expect from a guy getting paid over 600 K a year ! The only excuse he has is that he was coaching to lose the game - draft picks...

[st_Trav_ofWA]

St Trav the moves I suggested should be his 'bread and butter' and are what you would expect from a guy getting paid over 600 K a year ! The only excuse he has is that he was coaching to lose the game - draft picks...

again name me a coach in the AFL that isnt guilty of doing the same thing ? coaches are hired to make decisions and back those decisions that means often coaches are slow to react to changes or in some extent to pig headed in thier belief in their plan to deviate off that (our last coach was a prime example of that)... in the end the yeah we lost the game , and yeah it sucks balls , but hey its going to happen it happens every week to 50% of the coaches in the comp , as i said the possitives more than make up for the negatives , and at this point there is more value in sticking with a player to play a role (who is losing) so in the long term they learn from that experiance then it is to go into damage control ... we were not far off the mark following the plan put out by scotty so i cant blame him for not wanting to stick with it ... Scotty himself is still learning this art of coaching so from that point i think we can cut him some slack ... if we start going the way of Melbourne where the message is lost on the players then we have issues

[dragit]

600K?

[Stillwaiting]

600K?

Wouldnt thinks so, I reckon around $400.00 at this point

[mohannair]

I totally agree with the Op & the subsequent responses. If you compare our list with North Melbourne or Collingwood, obviously those 2 are way in front of us.

But the ladder says that we are almost in the same boat, what it says is that the competition is very tight & there is no big difference between the best & the worst (ladder wise).