Sack the Coach

[FortiusQuoFidelius]

I'm fed up with hearing every year that "we'll be better this season" and then really failing to make an impact.

Howl me down if you want to but the inconsistency and lack of pressure we have seen in the practice games is the result of one thing... poor coaching.

Our list is every bit as good as Carlton and Melbourne but they both taught us a football lesson in the 2 games we have played in the pre season.

We are going backwards... its time for change...replace the coach with someone who can teach our boys how to win.

[samoht]

I'd sack the recruiters first.

I think we need to replace them - we have 10 inside midfielders - who all do the same thing. The coach isn't to blame for that.
We need run and carry - 2 or 3 quality run and carry midfielders with a bit of toe and good kicking skills to help Steven out - we need to inject a bit of quality and balance into our overwhelmingly inside/one dimensional midfield.

I hope our recruiters aren't looking to recruit a $1.5 million a year forward like Lynch who averages 2 goals a game - and prioritise that instead - but I wouldn't put it past them.

[barneyboyz]

We could scream "play Peggy O'Neal at full forward...Worked ok for the Tigers last year

Let's face it, we're starting to look like Tigers supporters atm. It might just work!

[Moods]

I was at the game. 1st quarter was infuriating. They seemed to be able to score with alarming ease. It was our midfield and half backs. We weren't winning the inside ball and when we were our disposal by hand was terrible. We seemed weaker in one on ones and almost every important contest was halved at best by us, rarely won. I was pretty despondent like most others.

I thought we did okay to halve the 2nd quarter and stem their run. Our backs were much tighter and more aggressive. We struggle to run the ball cohesively down the ground though. I thought it would count for nothing if the floodgates opened again in the 3rd quarter.

The 3rd quarter was great, and almost looked like that the Dees had completely stopped. We were winning the ball in the contest which we simply HAVE to do. Having a target to aim at in Bruce gave the boys some confidence.

Last quarter was very disappointing as what it showed me was once the game was on the line, the Dees were simply far better than us.

Our rucks (particularly in the 1st half) was a major worry. Gawn was able to completely dictate where the ball was going and threw Hickey around like a rag doll - again. I would persevere with Marshall. He's young and raw but he competes and made Gawn earn his pay in the 2nd half. Yes, he'll make mistakes but I like him. Put him in.

Coffield was great. Rd 1 certainty. Billings was great for first hit out. Bruce got better as the match went on. I thought Members and Paddy were quite disappointing tbh.

We look a 8-12th team again. The game itself was a reasonably good standard I thought, and once we got going we demonstrated what Rich wants. Quick ball movement and get it through the corridoor. I'm not sure we have the skill set to pull this off though. Guys like Webster need to improve their skills coming off half back.

[Drake Huggins]

I'd sack the recruiters first.

I think we need to replace them - we have 10 inside midfielders - who all do the same thing. The coach isn't to blame for that.
We need run and carry - 2 or 3 quality run and carry midfielders with a bit of toe and good kicking skills to help Steven out - we need to inject a bit of quality and balance into our overwhelmingly inside/one dimensional midfield.

I hope our recruiters aren't looking to recruit a $1.5 million a year forward like Lynch who averages 2 goals a game - and prioritise that instead - but I wouldn't put it past them.

This. As critical as I've been of AR this past week, he can only work with what he's got. I think we have a far bigger problem with recruiting. Throw in the question marks about our physical preparation and our inability to run out games, last year and in this year's JLT, and you can see he's up against it.

[portosaint]

I'd sack the recruiters first.

I think we need to replace them - we have 10 inside midfielders - who all do the same thing. The coach isn't to blame for that.
We need run and carry - 2 or 3 quality run and carry midfielders with a bit of toe and good kicking skills to help Steven out - we need to inject a bit of quality and balance into our overwhelmingly inside/one dimensional midfield.

I hope our recruiters aren't looking to recruit a $1.5 million a year forward like Lynch who averages 2 goals a game - and prioritise that instead - but I wouldn't put it past them.

This. As critical as I've been of AR this past week, he can only work with what he's got. I think we have a far bigger problem with recruiting. Throw in the question marks about our physical preparation and our inability to run out games, last year and in this year's JLT, and you can see he's up against it.

Tend to agree a bit. I think we have some really good midfielders, it just so happens that they all play the same game. We miss the polish. Coff and Clark may help, but that won't happen overnight

[parkeysainter]

Sack the coach?

Personally, it will never happen anyway, but that would be the biggest clusterfuck of a decision ever made on the eve of a new season and when Richo is still contracted. Let Richo see out his term which he highly likely will then make the call on his tenure. Or if 2018 and 2019 are complete and utter disasters then make an early call.

It was a couple of praccie games full of experimentation and getting blokes into touch for the real stuff. Its why they are called practice matches.

[Con Gorozidis]

Hardwick had 15 wins in his 4th season.

[skeptic]

No arguments from me in that the coach is rightly under the pump. The Saints as a team at the end of last season were:
- Mentally weak and prone to not turning up
- Flat footed and slow
- Prone to bomb it forward to no one
- Obsessed with needlessly passing the ball around 5 times minimum before attempting to move it forward

And Richardson as a coach was conservative, favourable of playing slow footed and unbalanced teams and showed a real mentality to play favourites over ppl that worked harder and performed better.

The end result was that we finished a game and % outside the 8 after losing 5 of the last 7.

Make no mistake, we showed the ability to mix it with the best at times and most would agree that our best was good enough.

On that basis, to me he earned an opportunity to attempt to take it a step forward this season...
Hopefully iron out some of those above concerns.

He hasn’t started overly well so far.
Sacking him now would be madness

[SMS]

Simple equation. We play finals or he gets sacked. And even then scrapping into 8th on % and then losing the elim by 100 points would still have to question things
1. We have no injuries
2. Rebuild started 2011. YES completely from scratch so the normal 5 years not enough but its 7 now should be finals side and with all positions filled with talent/50+ gamers theres no excuse.

So who replaces him?

[dragit]

[Drake Huggins]

As if they're going to sack him. That would mean a massive payout as he's on for the next three years. What was Gil saying about being fiscally responsible? HQ would have a fit.

[R. Harvey 3 votes!]

As if they're going to sack him. That would mean a massive payout as he's on for the next three years. What was Gil saying about being fiscally responsible? HQ would have a fit.

Then who the f*** makes the decision to extend his f***** contract?

If we do not make finals by 2019 and have to sack Richo then someone else has to pay as well.

A one year extension would have been more than enough.

[Con Gorozidis]

The Saints are trend followers
The current trend in the AFL is 'stability is good. Instability bad .'
So we slavishly follow this trend for its own sake.

[Linton Lodger]

The Saints are trend followers
The current trend in the AFL is 'stability is good. Instability bad .'
So we slavishly follow this trend for its own sake.

Current? It worked well for Geelong, they were after Thomson's head at the end of '06, the Board was almost rolled over it. Geelong's stability may have actually cost us the 2009 Premiership.

Now wouldn't we look like that typical St Kilda rabble if we sacked a Coach pre-season.

[Linton Lodger]

The Saints are trend followers
The current trend in the AFL is 'stability is good. Instability bad .'
So we slavishly follow this trend for its own sake.

Question: Where you one of the members at the old St Kilda Social Club who used to give Tony Lockett s***, when he only kicked 6 goals 7?

[Linton Lodger]

Sack the coach?

Personally, it will never happen anyway, but that would be the biggest clusterfuck of a decision ever made on the eve of a new season and when Richo is still contracted. Let Richo see out his term which he highly likely will then make the call on his tenure. Or if 2018 and 2019 are complete and utter disasters then make an early call.

It was a couple of praccie games full of experimentation and getting blokes into touch for the real stuff. Its why they are called practice matches.

I think reason confuses many posters Parkey.

[saintkid]

I was at the game. 1st quarter was infuriating. They seemed to be able to score with alarming ease. It was our midfield and half backs. We weren't winning the inside ball and when we were our disposal by hand was terrible. We seemed weaker in one on ones and almost every important contest was halved at best by us, rarely won. I was pretty despondent like most others.

I thought we did okay to halve the 2nd quarter and stem their run. Our backs were much tighter and more aggressive. We struggle to run the ball cohesively down the ground though. I thought it would count for nothing if the floodgates opened again in the 3rd quarter.

The 3rd quarter was great, and almost looked like that the Dees had completely stopped. We were winning the ball in the contest which we simply HAVE to do. Having a target to aim at in Bruce gave the boys some confidence.

Last quarter was very disappointing as what it showed me was once the game was on the line, the Dees were simply far better than us.

Our rucks (particularly in the 1st half) was a major worry. Gawn was able to completely dictate where the ball was going and threw Hickey around like a rag doll - again. I would persevere with Marshall. He's young and raw but he competes and made Gawn earn his pay in the 2nd half. Yes, he'll make mistakes but I like him. Put him in.

Coffield was great. Rd 1 certainty. Billings was great for first hit out. Bruce got better as the match went on. I thought Members and Paddy were quite disappointing tbh.

We look a 8-12th team again. The game itself was a reasonably good standard I thought, and once we got going we demonstrated what Rich wants. Quick ball movement and get it through the corridoor. I'm not sure we have the skill set to pull this off though. Guys like Webster need to improve their skills coming off half back.

Good review. I would add very frustrating also. You could see a number of our players were trying to make an impact but the reality is many are not good enough and I put a lot of the blame on our recruiters. That first quarter was embarrassing and all this talk from Nathan Brown and a couple of others, saying they would come out a different unit in Round 2 JLT. Yeah right, this guy is so slow, he should be playing VFL and the filth were not silly to let him go and not offer Freeman another longer contract. We seem to cling on hope and 'has beens' to build our future. God help us if any of our few A graders get injured this year.

[samuraisaint]

Sack the coach and blame Hickey?!? Really? Our rebuild started in 2013, not 2011. We played finals that year and only missed finals on % in 2012.

I was at the game last night and there were only two good things about it - beer in cans and the fact that it got so dark in the final quarter it was hard to see the inevitable collapse when we got close.

It seems to me that we may experience a difficult first half of a season while we get used to life after Riewoldt and Montagna. No finals this year. That was never likely under the circumstances anyway. I was not surprised with last night - I expected it. Melbourne have improved their playing stocks and have a talented list. But combined with the Carlton loss and the signs against Hawthorn in that AFLX thingy my belief is that we are just going to tread water this season. Still, 12 wins are better than 4.

At least Hickey was able to hold a couple of marks and drop back into defence occasionally. Plenty worse than him last night.

The midfield won enough of the ball but the problem is when we go forward - there is no system when the ball goes forward, and no set plays about what to do when one of our tall forwards doesn't mark the ball. Gresham and Billings kept getting crowded when they tried to have a shot on goal.

McCartin seemed to play a role where he drifts upfield chasing kicks. Not sure if that is a good option at all. Stay at home forward for mine.

It's the forward line that is the issue. It may be that the delivery from the midfielders is the problem, but it is starting to look like a lot of them are struggling to hold a simple mark. I saw one of them last night go up one handed for a mark against an opponent. I mean; really...?

[saintkid]

The Saints are trend followers
The current trend in the AFL is 'stability is good. Instability bad .'
So we slavishly follow this trend for its own sake.

Question: Where you one of the members at the old St Kilda Social Club who used to give Tony Lockett s***, when he only kicked 6 goals 7?

My old man was there. Wasn't so much the members but the administrators. Rick Watt the CEO, who was a wanker according to him, did that as well as some others. One night Tony blew and wanted to kill Watt and almost did. Can you blame the big man? Arguably the best forward we ever had, often unstoppable and would play a lone hand in the forward line most weeks back then. Single handedly won games for us and still was picked on for being lazy on the field!

[congorozides]

The Saints are trend followers
The current trend in the AFL is 'stability is good. Instability bad .'
So we slavishly follow this trend for its own sake.

Question: Where you one of the members at the old St Kilda Social Club who used to give Tony Lockett s***, when he only kicked 6 goals 7?

No.
Not even sure what connection you are trying to make?

I am questioning why those running the club felt it was necessary to rush to give the coach an extension after zero finals appearances. Same reason I am not sure why they rushed to give Paddy an extension.

How that can be connected to Tony Locket 30 years ago is completely beyond me.

Plugger was the best player I have seen. Full stop. Although completely irrelevant to the discussion about Alan Richardson's contract.

As stated above - it was the fuckheads RUNNING the club who bagged Lockett.

Are you one of those fans that thinks everybody in a position of authority at the club is an infallible genius? Like the catholic mums who refuse to accept a priest could ever possibly do anything wrong.

[ausfatcat]

sack the coach based on a preseason ffs how ridiculous is that

[congorozides]

The Saints are trend followers
The current trend in the AFL is 'stability is good. Instability bad .'
So we slavishly follow this trend for its own sake.

Current? It worked well for Geelong, they were after Thomson's head at the end of '06, the Board was almost rolled over it. Geelong's stability may have actually cost us the 2009 Premiership.

Now wouldn't we look like that typical St Kilda rabble if we sacked a Coach pre-season.

Thompson had 16 wins in 2004.

It would be lunacy to sack our coach now. Agree.

I just dont understand why we rushed to give him such a long extension for no apparent reason.

We could and should have waited until the end of this season to make a decision.

Why the panic and the rush to extend?

Talk about rabble.

[congorozides]

sack the coach based on a preseason ffs how ridiculous is that

I think end of 2018 season was the sensible time to make a call on AR. 5 years outside finals would be a cause for genuine concern.

Not sure why we spooked ourselves in to a panicked extension just to give the perception of stability. Screams insecurity.

A secure stable club would be happy to wait and see.

[congorozides]

Lets be honest. Just making the 8 shouldnt be all that hard.

Essendon and the Eagles were both very ordinary last year yet made the 8.