Richo review

[Moods]

Not sure how long an executive or senior manager in Basset's Seek organisation would last if they had the sub standard output that Richo has had for 5 years- there would be no propping up with other staff to try and get results..you would be long gone! No doubt Richo is only still there while the club sees out his contract.

This is most likely correct. However, I commend the club for trying to get the best out of him. Much rather that than we just sat on our hands waiting for his contract to expire and 'allow' him to fail. One thing that was clear from the article - we simply can't afford, figuratively or literally, to have another year like last year. We need success on the field as our supporters appear to be dropping off like flys

[Crossy66]

Not sure how long an executive or senior manager in Basset's Seek organisation would last if they had the sub standard output that Richo has had for 5 years- there would be no propping up with other staff to try and get results..you would be long gone! No doubt Richo is only still there while the club sees out his contract.

every time i read someone say something like 5 years of Richo failure, i think its inaccurate. Richo took over a wooden spooner and went 18th, 14th then 9th, missing finals only on %. At that point i reckon anyone with a balanced view would think the trajectory was about right and he was going ok in the W/L department.
In 2017 at round 16, we were in the 8 and had just given Richmond some sort of hiding. For some reason the wheels fell off at that point with the last part of the season and the next a trainwreck. We ended up missing finals by a game and % but i think it was a subpar result. 2018 was a trainwreck.
So on balance i think its more 1.5 years than 5 that have been subpar.

[HitTheBoundary]

The challenge for Richo this year will be to accept the feedback - and not be so negative - whilst he is under extreme pressure regarding his job.

If we start losing games it will be incredibly hard under pressure (especially during games) not to revert to what he has been doing previously.

[Crossy66]

The challenge for Richo this year will be to accept the feedback - and not be so negative - whilst he is under extreme pressure regarding his job.

If we start losing games it will be incredibly hard under pressure (especially during games) not to revert to what he has been doing previously.

Cue brett ratten, having a wise head in the box is critical

[HitTheBoundary]

The challenge for Richo this year will be to accept the feedback - and not be so negative - whilst he is under extreme pressure regarding his job.

If we start losing games it will be incredibly hard under pressure (especially during games) not to revert to what he has been doing previously.

Cue brett ratten, having a wise head in the box is critical

The set up at the moment sounds almost like Good Cop / Bad Cop (in temperament).
It'll be an interesting year.

The feedback comments re Richo put the prior comments by Dunstan, Lonie and others that their form improved when returning to their "natural game" in a clearer context.

[skeptic]

I think the bigger challenge for Richo is getting the larger football public back on his side...
That’s fans, experts and other players.

Some may say that as long as the club supports him that’s the most important thing but his reputation impacts things like players willing to come to the club, sponsorship etc.

At the moment his reputation is one of a dead man walking and he’s in the unenviable position of if we prosper it’ll be Ratten and others succeeding in spite of him and if we fail it’s because we always knew he had to go.

It’s a very challenging situation for him to be in.

Not saying this to knock the man... more that it reminds me of the GT era... if he succeeds with the list then he’s just achieved what he always should have... if he doesn’t win premierships then he’s underachieving.

It feels lose lose to me

[Cairnsman]

How many people do you know that have been in a job a lot longer than Alan has been the coach and are considered a waste of oxygen by their employer but due to union rules or legalities cant he moved on. At least Alan is open to honest feedback and is working on his weaknesses.

[skeptic]

How many people do you know that have been in a job a lot longer than Alan has been the coach and are considered a waste of oxygen by their employer but due to union rules or legalities cant he moved on. At least Alan is open to honest feedback and is working on his weaknesses.

And to be honest, it’s a quality that’s really admirable.

Guys like GT and RL were both fantastic coaches for us and I respect both but IMO, they both had fatal flaws that they were unwilling to address and it cost them both dearly and us the ultimate prize.
GT didn’t back the speacilist staff... recruiters, injury management, financial people etc enough let them do their jobs properly
RL failed to find a way to get the best out of players that didn’t/couldn’t adapt to his expectations and plans right away and was very rigid

The thing that I have remind myself... and that the critics should remember, is that pre 2018, things were looking up. We were developing fairly well, I felt confident that he’d built a strong culture with a talented had a heap of potential and the trajectory was all up.

The cha@llenge for me was that 2018 in addition to players stagnating, the coaching didn’t appear to respond to or even acknowledge the short comings the year before.
My concern was that we just felt it didn’t work out and we’d keep trying the same things over and over again and expect it to happen

Feeding into that concern was that fact that Weller and Hickey were the only major casualties of the list that seriously underperformed.

I feel satisfied however that overall, the penny has dropped with both Richo and the club, that they’ve made some big changes off the field, developed a stronger understanding of where they are at as a club and more importantly where they want to be and how to get there.
The new coaches and the mature age players is a fantastic start.

Hannebery will add something for sure... I still don’t think he’s the player we needed onfield per’se but even if he becomes the best of what we already have that’s a good step and more importantly it means the club isn’t stupid enough to think that it can fix everything in one off-season which is incredibly important.

We seem to have energy at the moment which is something I feel like we’ve lacked for a while...

The question now is what’s a realistic expectation for 2019?

I don’t think we can realistically expect to make the finals... list is just too imbalanced, but if we can achieve close to 2017 results with marked in improvement in skills and an exciting/effective gameplan, that’s pbly enough for me.

[avid]

Well said, Skeptic.

[Cairnsman]

Can someone list the traits that suggest Richardson could ever be a good coach?

Could someone please list any evidence to suggest that he could ever be a good coach?


What are the reasons for persevering with him? What strengths does he have?
Obviously the weaknesses and flaws are enormous given the amount of 'support' the club has had to bring in - so what are the elite traits that he has as a coach and leader that warrants and justifies this perseverance?

Serious question.

It could be something to do with not having too big an ego and accepting honest feedback on his weaknesses and using the feedback to the advantage of the club. That makes him uber professional. How many good coaches have come and gone because thier ego stopped them from being great. I've never denied he has weaknesses however I've argued strongly the club should persist with him in 2019 if they feel his weaknesses aren't that bad and if they feel he can adapt and improve.

Time will tell, I really hope he succeeds because that will show massive maturity and growth from the club and thier handling of the situation which will create such excitement and energy from the satisfaction of knowing thier process worked.

[kosifantutti]

Let's remember that it took another Allan six years to coach his first flag!

After they’d played finals three years out of five.

[shanegrambeau]

I hope that Richo isn’t already written off in the inner sanctum of power at the club and that they genuinely believe.

I wish the enquiry would look more closely at chains of events rather than overall culture.like at how and why we so spectacularly fell from around 17, 2017 to the mob that North flogged early in the season in 2018.

One thing about rebuilds that doesn’t get talked about is how tough the fixture can become as you rise incrementally up the ladder.

[sunsaint]

...here we go again - another review
this guy has got more lives than an alley cat
The players had their disgruntled meeting during the year ( i mean review) and the crisis meeting with subsequent coach apology that followed
Then the "thorough" review by Lethlean and the public confirmation that he would see out the season as coach
End of season review ...
This one

Look i get that when you're on the bottom of the ladder there is only one direction the side can go so any improvements that Ratten or recruits bring just muddy the water as to his worth as coach
So my view as to his abilities will not change with any incremental rise up the ladder
And dont forget the expectations bar had already been set very high for this side playing - finals and aiming to win it

but last year I did note the comments from a player that had played under him...

Riewoldt agreed, and continued on.

“Someone else will do it or, I’ll do it, and you take a shot from outside 50 and burn two teammates,” he said in reference to another piece of vision.

“I’m not talking about selfish players, and I’m not talking about players that don’t know what the game plan is. But when you fall into the trap of playing survival mode footy, the first thing to disappear is your voice, your direction, team defence.

“You don’t hand over because your vision comes to here (gestures in close) rather than looking out to your teammates

https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/st-kil ... 7b39cd565c

[rodgerfox]

Can someone list the traits that suggest Richardson could ever be a good coach?

Could someone please list any evidence to suggest that he could ever be a good coach?


What are the reasons for persevering with him? What strengths does he have?
Obviously the weaknesses and flaws are enormous given the amount of 'support' the club has had to bring in - so what are the elite traits that he has as a coach and leader that warrants and justifies this perseverance?

Serious question.

It could be something to do with not having too big an ego and accepting honest feedback on his weaknesses and using the feedback to the advantage of the club. That makes him uber professional. How many good coaches have come and gone because thier ego stopped them from being great. I've never denied he has weaknesses however I've argued strongly the club should persist with him in 2019 if they feel his weaknesses aren't that bad and if they feel he can adapt and improve.

Time will tell, I really hope he succeeds because that will show massive maturity and growth from the club and thier handling of the situation which will create such excitement and energy from the satisfaction of knowing thier process worked.

Not having a big ego isn't a strength. Having an out of control ego is a flaw - but not having one is hardly a strength as such.

I'm looking for specific strengths that suggest he's worth holding on to.

Communication, tactical nouse, leadership, relationship building with the players, etc.

From the outside, I haven't seen.evidence of any of that. And I haven't heard the club spruik any of this stuff either. All we seem to hear is how much support the bloke needs.

[Linton Lodger]

Rd 19 against GWS?
I don't recall that game at all.
Have to go back and check the stats.

That was the best footy we played all year.

[SaintPav]

Can someone list the traits that suggest Richardson could ever be a good coach?

Could someone please list any evidence to suggest that he could ever be a good coach?


What are the reasons for persevering with him? What strengths does he have?
Obviously the weaknesses and flaws are enormous given the amount of 'support' the club has had to bring in - so what are the elite traits that he has as a coach and leader that warrants and justifies this perseverance?

Serious question.

It could be something to do with not having too big an ego and accepting honest feedback on his weaknesses and using the feedback to the advantage of the club. That makes him uber professional. How many good coaches have come and gone because thier ego stopped them from being great. I've never denied he has weaknesses however I've argued strongly the club should persist with him in 2019 if they feel his weaknesses aren't that bad and if they feel he can adapt and improve.

Time will tell, I really hope he succeeds because that will show massive maturity and growth from the club and thier handling of the situation which will create such excitement and energy from the satisfaction of knowing thier process worked.

Not having a big ego isn't a strength. Having an out of control ego is a flaw - but not having one is hardly a strength as such.

I'm looking for specific strengths that suggest he's worth holding on to.

Communication, tactical nouse, leadership, relationship building with the players, etc.

From the outside, I haven't seen.evidence of any of that. And I haven't heard the club spruik any of this stuff either. All we seem to hear is how much support the bloke needs.

But Richo is an Uber professional. Why doesn't he just catch taxis?

[SaintPav]

Rd 19 against GWS?
I don't recall that game at all.
Have to go back and check the stats.

That was the best footy we played all year.

Thought the Melbourne game at the G was our best.

[Cairnsman]

Can someone list the traits that suggest Richardson could ever be a good coach?

Could someone please list any evidence to suggest that he could ever be a good coach?


What are the reasons for persevering with him? What strengths does he have?
Obviously the weaknesses and flaws are enormous given the amount of 'support' the club has had to bring in - so what are the elite traits that he has as a coach and leader that warrants and justifies this perseverance?

Serious question.

It could be something to do with not having too big an ego and accepting honest feedback on his weaknesses and using the feedback to the advantage of the club. That makes him uber professional. How many good coaches have come and gone because thier ego stopped them from being great. I've never denied he has weaknesses however I've argued strongly the club should persist with him in 2019 if they feel his weaknesses aren't that bad and if they feel he can adapt and improve.

Time will tell, I really hope he succeeds because that will show massive maturity and growth from the club and thier handling of the situation which will create such excitement and energy from the satisfaction of knowing thier process worked.

Not having a big ego isn't a strength. Having an out of control ego is a flaw - but not having one is hardly a strength as such.

I'm looking for specific strengths that suggest he's worth holding on to.

Communication, tactical nouse, leadership, relationship building with the players, etc.

From the outside, I haven't seen.evidence of any of that. And I haven't heard the club spruik any of this stuff either. All we seem to hear is how much support the bloke needs.

Having an ego in-check as a leader is a massive strength when it comes to communication, leadership and relationship building. Being humble enough to accept feedback doesn't happen if you your ego isn't in check. Did the genesis of the article linked in the OP somehow not strike a chord with you? What sort of evidence are you looking for? I've heard Richo survived because his relationship with most people at the club is good including most players. He's a relationship type leader. Are you a manager at any level? Do you ask for feedback?

[rodgerfox]

Having an ego in-check as a leader is a massive strength when it comes to communication, leadership and relationship building. Being humble enough to accept feedback doesn't happen if you your ego isn't in check. Did the genesis of the article linked in the OP somehow not strike a chord with you? What sort of evidence are you looking for? I've heard Richo survived because his relationship with most people at the club is good including most players. He's a relationship type leader. Are you a manager at any level? Do you ask for feedback?

I've heard that he's a good bloke. And he clearly has a good relationship with the CEO and the ex-President.
But I haven't heard any of the players rave about him. In fact what stood out most in that article is that it seems the players think he's coached poorly.

Even ex-players don't seem to go out of their way to spruik his abilities.

I'm not saying that the players hate him, I just haven't really heard anything of note come out of the club that really explains why he's still got the job.


You don't get a coaching gig because you're a good bloke and don't have an ego. There's millions of people out there with those traits.
Those traits will often enhance the actual core skills that required to be a good football coach. But they in themselves are not the core skills.

[skeptic]

I think when a team struggled like we did in 2018... it’s probably pretty hard to turn around and say yes the coach is amazing at A, B, and C.
Who would buy that?

The point is well made however and I think that pre this last off-season, the club as a whole has done quite a poor job in selling itself or looking appealing. I think that’s a broader issue that goes beyond the coaching per’se.

The impression I had personally of the club going into the off-season was that the coach had lost the players, many wanted out, nobody of any talent wanted to come here and despite those half-hearted assurances, Richo was a deadman walking and would certainly have been sacked already if not for the contract extension.

We didn’t convey an image that suggested we understood our short comings and were even considering mixing things up.

To me, that was the most damning thing.

Opposition supporters seemingly stopped even giving us a hard time and merely pitied us.

The image to me know is that we’ve made a ton of of field changes, and are at least being progressive and the current group really want to prove themselves

[Cairnsman]

Having an ego in-check as a leader is a massive strength when it comes to communication, leadership and relationship building. Being humble enough to accept feedback doesn't happen if you your ego isn't in check. Did the genesis of the article linked in the OP somehow not strike a chord with you? What sort of evidence are you looking for? I've heard Richo survived because his relationship with most people at the club is good including most players. He's a relationship type leader. Are you a manager at any level? Do you ask for feedback?

I've heard that he's a good bloke. And he clearly has a good relationship with the CEO and the ex-President.
But I haven't heard any of the players rave about him. In fact what stood out most in that article is that it seems the players think he's coached poorly.

Even ex-players don't seem to go out of their way to spruik his abilities.

I'm not saying that the players hate him, I just haven't really heard anything of note come out of the club that really explains why he's still got the job.


You don't get a coaching gig because you're a good bloke and don't have an ego. There's millions of people out there with those traits.
Those traits will often enhance the actual core skills that required to be a good football coach. But they in themselves are not the core skills.

Sorry RF some of what you say there is completely made up. Can you quote something from that article that backs up your claim the players think he coached poorly. Providing feedback on specific aspects of coaching in the context of players being asked to provide feedback is all that was at play. I didn't read anywhere in that article the phrase "poor coaching".

[Cairnsman]

I think when a team struggled like we did in 2018... it’s probably pretty hard to turn around and say yes the coach is amazing at A, B, and C.
Who would buy that?

The point is well made however and I think that pre this last off-season, the club as a whole has done quite a poor job in selling itself or looking appealing. I think that’s a broader issue that goes beyond the coaching per’se.

The impression I had personally of the club going into the off-season was that the coach had lost the players, many wanted out, nobody of any talent wanted to come here and despite those half-hearted assurances, Richo was a deadman walking and would certainly have been sacked already if not for the contract extension.

We didn’t convey an image that suggested we understood our short comings and were even considering mixing things up.

To me, that was the most damning thing.

Opposition supporters seemingly stopped even giving us a hard time and merely pitied us.

The image to me know is that we’ve made a ton of of field changes, and are at least being progressive and the current group really want to prove themselves

Oh mate you've been going so well, you've regressed to making stuff up again. Your impressions are not deeply rooted in fact.

[Jacks Back]

One thing we know for sure. It's going to be a 'strong' season built on strong coaching and even stronger relationships.

Yes, the use of the word "strong" became very distracting and took away from a good article and insight into what's been happening post 2018 season. I hope the communications person is working with him to expand his dialogue, otherwise the best of messages won't get through.

Strong:
adj determined, resolute
aggressive
clear
courageous
deep
fierce
firm
forceful
intelligent
intense
potent
resilient
severe
steadfast
tenacious
tough
vehement

[skeptic]

I think when a team struggled like we did in 2018... it’s probably pretty hard to turn around and say yes the coach is amazing at A, B, and C.
Who would buy that?

The point is well made however and I think that pre this last off-season, the club as a whole has done quite a poor job in selling itself or looking appealing. I think that’s a broader issue that goes beyond the coaching per’se.

The impression I had personally of the club going into the off-season was that the coach had lost the players, many wanted out, nobody of any talent wanted to come here and despite those half-hearted assurances, Richo was a deadman walking and would certainly have been sacked already if not for the contract extension.

We didn’t convey an image that suggested we understood our short comings and were even considering mixing things up.

To me, that was the most damning thing.

Opposition supporters seemingly stopped even giving us a hard time and merely pitied us.

The image to me know is that we’ve made a ton of of field changes, and are at least being progressive and the current group really want to prove themselves

Oh mate you've been going so well, you've regressed to making stuff up again. Your impressions are not deeply rooted in fact.

Well no... that’s why they’re impressions and not facts. That’s what was posted on forums... hinted at in the media, implied when players went to other clubs for less money, when journos turned up to Moorabbin seemingly to cover the sacking.

Just to be clear, I’m not criticising the coach here... it just felt that there was a stink about the club and I personally don’t think the club did a very good job dispelling that at the time it was at its worst.

Don’t get me wrong, I understand that the turmoil may not have been there internally... but IMO it at least looked very messy at times from the outside looking in.

I think they’ve done it now and I reckon this Bassett guy in particular seems like a very good spokesman

[Cairnsman]

... posted on forums... hinted at in the media, implied when players went to other clubs for less money, when journos turned up to Moorabbin seemingly to cover the sacking.

This goes to the very heart of one of the issues humans are struggling with atm.

Free thinking is being dominated by no fact and alternate fact.