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Impatient Sainter wrote: ↑Tue 19 Oct 2021 1:22pm
Every time we have instability like GT & Ryan are creating it puts the club back years. Put up or shut up GT you had your chance, fleeced the club blind and failed. Now get back in your box & STFU.
I also am not hearing a lot of positive solutions being offered just vague assertions about how 'something is wrong'.
Well a blind dog could tell you 'something is wrong' at our club but that doesn't just mean you're going to be able to fix it just by observing it.
Or by airing our issues via a media campaign
Absolutely disgraceful and the same old Thomas trick
Impatient Sainter wrote: ↑Tue 19 Oct 2021 1:22pm
Every time we have instability like GT & Ryan are creating it puts the club back years. Put up or shut up GT you had your chance, fleeced the club blind and failed. Now get back in your box & STFU.
I also am not hearing a lot of positive solutions being offered just vague assertions about how 'something is wrong'.
Well a blind dog could tell you 'something is wrong' at our club but that doesn't just mean you're going to be able to fix it just by observing it.
Or by airing our issues via a media campaign
Absolutely disgraceful and the same old Thomas trick
I really didn't like the part of the article where they hinted that there was someone on the board that everyone knew was dead wood and needed to go. That struck me as quite a low act and unprofessional. I'm sure insiders know who he's referring to as well which makes it seem like a power play.
I probably don't have quite as negative a view of GT as yourself -- in fact I think he was a really great coach and respect him as a passionate Saints fan -- but I agree the whole thing rubs me the wrong way.
As always I live in hope that I'll be proven totally wrong and that Benge would be an utterly fantastic board member who brought new ideas and fresh insight to the club. Still don't like the way they've gone about it so far.
This was my father's belief
And this is also mine:
Let the corn be all one sheaf--
And the grapes be all one vine,
Ere our children's teeth are set on edge
By bitter bread and wine.
axcellence wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 9:16am
Grant Thomas for CEO/Chairman.... at least he cares for the club.
How many other Saint "luminaries" are willing to put their name to their views on the club.
Everyone has a media gig and shies away from speaking the blunt honest truth.
St Kilda has really stuffed it up post Ross Lyon (and some recruitment during his time) and needs to make a statement.
If he truly cared for the club he would keep his big mouth shut or join the board himself if he wants to see changes. The guy is a megalomaniac and loves the sound of his own voice.
He was fortunate that when he coached the club we had one of the best lists in the competition, apart from a ruckman. I have personally heard ex-players suggest if the coaching staff had any tactical nous at all, we would have won a flag over that time.
Plus let's not even discuss how poorly resourced the Strength & Conditioning team were while he was personally paid a fortune.
The guy is a parasite and always has been in my books and there could be no worse result than him becoming CEO or Chairman of our club.
Has he really properly analysed the playing list? We are in far better shape than we were three years ago. Why wasn't he piping up in 2016/17? A swag of players were coming to the end ( Riewoldt, Montagna, Armitage, Dempster, Gilbert, etc) and we had very few talented youngsters.
Also, we've moved back to Moorabbin, we're building the Danny Frawley Centre, we have the women's team, and we have our highest membership figures during a pandemic!
To say we're not in the business of premierships is nonsense. This current list revamp started in earnest in 2018. It's still in progress and has another 18 months to run. Apart from finding a replacement for Ryder, I think we will be be in even better shape in 12 months from now
I'm sure Thomas sincerely wants success for the club and I'm not against the dentist being added to the board, but the insinuation that the club has not made progress in the past three years is incorrect in my view
Quite remarkable how Grant Thomas generates so much spirited comment when he expresses thoughts and opinions about his old club.
I'm on record as saying that I considered GT's overall record when he coached St Kilda (and the manner in which he was appointed in 2001) as a failure, despite some really impressive winning streaks during his tenure.
Nonetheless I am happy to acknowledge that he is a very smart and successful businessman and respect his right to cast judgment on the way the club is managed when the team languishes, as it has in 2021. Like it or not, Thomas is very much a St Kilda person
His and Gerry Ryan's endorsement of Larry Benge to run for a place on the St Kilda Board is not a big deal, in fact it is quite a good thing for Boards in all fields of enterprise to have pressure applied to ensure success, and I would be surprised if Andrew Bassat considers that a malicious threat.
During my experience in a previous life as CEO of a large NGO, answerable to a board of directors, I have witnessed the dysfunctionality resulting from boards that become dormant and lazy when they fail to embrace renewal and fresh blood that can inject much needed energy, new ideas and benchmarks to achieve greater success.
It is incumbent on the Board of St Kilda FC to do everything in its power to acquire that evasive and long awaited 2nd premiership cup to Moorabbin.
One of the burning questions has to be: is the working relationship between current CEO Matt Finis and Chief Operating Officer Simon Lethlean successful, as I have sometimes wondered if it might be time for Finis to move on and be replaced by Lethlean, who clearly has ambitions to progress his career beyond the current level.
"Any candidate for political office, once chosen for leadership, must have the will to take the wheel of a very powerful car, tasked from time to time to make a fast journey down a narrow, precipitous mountain road – and be highly skilled at driving. Otherwise, he is disqualified from the company of competent leaders."
John Carroll, Professor Emeritus of Sociology at La Trobe University.
Good fodder for the media, especially given not much has happened draft/trade wise.
So, Gerry Ryan has quietly endorsed Benge, saying he would add value to the Board. Fair enough, he may be right.
Contrast this to the "endorsement" of GT, where he is "very interested in how the club treat this approach, if Benge is not taken seriously or respected I will definitely think seriously about my next steps", and "I only have one good fight left in me and - as always - I'm very happy to use it for the cause of St Kilda". What an arrogant tw*t.
Can we trade pick 9 and Thomas and his "support" to Nth Melbourne for a mars bar? Maybe not, North wouldn't take him. What about Gold Coast? I'd do it.
takeaway wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 11:44am
Good fodder for the media, especially given not much has happened draft/trade wise.
So, Gerry Ryan has quietly endorsed Benge, saying he would add value to the Board. Fair enough, he may be right.
Contrast this to the "endorsement" of GT, where he is "very interested in how the club treat this approach, if Benge is not taken seriously or respected I will definitely think seriously about my next steps", and "I only have one good fight left in me and - as always - I'm very happy to use it for the cause of St Kilda". What an arrogant tw*t.
Can we trade pick 9 and Thomas and his "support" to Nth Melbourne for a mars bar? Maybe not, North wouldn't take him. What about Gold Coast? I'd do it.
I always grit my teeth when GT starts using his colorful language…it does evoke a cringe. However, I think he is concerned .he is definitely ‘butting in’ perhaps unhelpfully for the current mob, but I will say, unlike some others, he’s never cared about being a media mouthpiece or being a media star.
saynta wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 1:59pm
Grant left the club in better shape than when he first pitched in. The same cannot be said about Lyin.
Indeed.
Lying put us back at least 5 years - which became 12 plus years due to our poor recruiting (Lyin torpedoed the ship and started sinking it, but Trout, Bain, Pelchen and co, etc... finished us off, and more or less scuttled whatever remained of the ship).
Thomas is a very good business man and does have a passion for the club. My concern if however is he is a little like Malcom Turnbull, when he is in a room he believes he is the most important and intelligent person there, be that correct or otherwise.
He is a control freak as we saw towards the end of his coaching time when he wanted to control contracts etc as well as coach - that doesn't work at a football club. Start up business absolutely as he has the vision and controls the path which he is brilliant at , as his bank balance will testify to.
I am sure he has a lot to offer but just not sure if he is a team player, when the path isn't the one he decides .
saynta wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 1:59pm
Thomas is someone who loves the St Kilda football club just like most of the true supporters on this forum
He does however, have more than a vested interest in the club be once played for an later coached being seen as successful and becoming so.
When he left the club was headed in the right direction, only to be subsequently derailed by the Tosser Flosser.
Grant left the club in better shape than when he first pitched in. The same cannot be said about Lyin.
He wants the club to be successful as we all want, and is entitled to voice an opinion
Some of us might not agree with him. So what. I don't agree with a lot of the negative rubbish posted on this forum but we are all in this together.
I do however have a problem with Grant's timing.
I like what you are saying saynta, especially & only your last sentence.
The club that Grant got jettisoned from was not better, hence why we spent 4 years in a wilderness. He had been gifted a club full of top draft picks & recruits who wanted to play for Blight, when he left we had screwed our recruits.
He was & is and (in my opinion) will always be a charlatan.
B.M wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 5:05pm
He did challenge conventions
That’s why the establishment didn’t like him and more to the point he didn’t like them!
I liked the fact he questioned what’s always been done and why we do it
I think some traditions are stupid , so did Grant
Not often I agree with you 100%!
This is one of those rare occasions!
What an absolute cop out. Please explain & commit to what it is that GT did for the St Kilda football club.
What? You mean apart from leading the club as senior coach for 4 years? He was the coach who oversaw the development of our young talent. He was mentor to a bunch of young recruits who would later be great leaders and captains of AFL footy clubs.
He was a huge factor in St Kilda being taken seriously and we enjoyed a winning a culture. GT helped set up the foundations for a team to grow and gell together and play deep into September during his time as senior coach. Did you think our success under Thommo was accidental was it?
Apart from being the leader and apart from providing a legacy that would see the club go on to continue to play deep into September, he was a mentor to the talent that the club brought into the club. Nick Riewoldt was just 24 when GT was sacked. The rest of the young stars were 22-23…in other words, their best footy was just ahead of them
saynta wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 1:59pm
Thomas is someone who loves the St Kilda football club just like most of the true supporters on this forum
He does however, have more than a vested interest in the club be once played for an later coached being seen as successful and becoming so.
When he left the club was headed in the right direction, only to be subsequently derailed by the Tosser Flosser.
Grant left the club in better shape than when he first pitched in. The same cannot be said about Lyin.
He wants the club to be successful as we all want, and is entitled to voice an opinion
Some of us might not agree with him. So what. I don't agree with a lot of the negative rubbish posted on this forum but we are all in this together.
I do however have a problem with Grant's timing.
I like what you are saying saynta, especially & only your last sentence.
The club that Grant got jettisoned from was not better, hence why we spent 4 years in a wilderness. He had been gifted a club full of top draft picks & recruits who wanted to play for Blight, when he left we had screwed our recruits.
He was & is and (in my opinion) will always be a charlatan.
People with a conflict of interest need not comment imo
Let’s contrast Ross Lyon’s last 4 years at Freo as senior coach with GT’s legacy as senior coach
Grant is mentor and senior coach to some very high end talent that St Kilda gets from the National draft over a few consecutive years and with some good choices (and some luck with Carlton getting penalised) we land a bunch of talented young stars who we hope will stay with our club and create their own history at St Kilda
Ross Lyon at Freo in his last few years was losing the talent that they had on their list. Contrast the way the young players spoke about Grant at the time he was their senior coach with what you hear about the young players at Freo. I think at one stage Adam Cerra told Carlton that he wouldn’t play for them if Lyon was appointed coach.
Freo was in a strong position with early draft picks and some finishes down the ladder plus with Lachie Neale departing the club ( plus Lachie Weller going to Gold Coast and The Suns overpaying) Freo had some young stars and a team who could potentially lead the club to their first flag
So …what did we see with that bunch of young stars at St Kilda in the next 4 years after GT was sacked? Did they stay with our club? Did they stay loyal and feel a sense of belonging to our club and a yearning to achieve something for the St Kilda FC? I’d say yes! The first guy to leave was basically pressured and basically criticised publicly before making s decision to leave St Kilda at the end of 2009
Contrast our group at St Kilda versus the group at Freo. Guys like Lobb and Cerra wanted out this year. Langdon had already gone as well as Neale a few years earlier and perhaps the legacy of Lyon is that you have players who don’t give 2 hoots about the Fremantle Football club
saynta wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 1:59pm
Thomas is someone who loves the St Kilda football club just like most of the true supporters on this forum
He does however, have more than a vested interest in the club be once played for an later coached being seen as successful and becoming so.
When he left the club was headed in the right direction, only to be subsequently derailed by the Tosser Flosser.
Grant left the club in better shape than when he first pitched in. The same cannot be said about Lyin.
He wants the club to be successful as we all want, and is entitled to voice an opinion
Some of us might not agree with him. So what. I don't agree with a lot of the negative rubbish posted on this forum but we are all in this together.
I do however have a problem with Grant's timing.
I like what you are saying saynta, especially & only your last sentence.
The club that Grant got jettisoned from was not better, hence why we spent 4 years in a wilderness. He had been gifted a club full of top draft picks & recruits who wanted to play for Blight, when he left we had screwed our recruits.
He was & is and (in my opinion) will always be a charlatan.
People with a conflict of interest need not comment imo
A conflict of interest??? Let's not ask how he got the head coach role shall we? Please remind me though of the transparent panel that he faced and who he beat for the role.
A legacy??? You must be one of his sporn. No legacy, he & Rendell failed miserably with a quality list.
The club that Grant left was a million dollars richer before he paid Blight out. Yes, Blight, the man whose name attracted Hamill & Gehrig. $$$ he guaranteed yet made the club pay for. Top bloke!
Stop talking through your hat and with that green eyed monster in your head. If GT had done what you say he did, why didn’t the legal system see it that way?
Too many vendettas and too many envious people around here when it comes to the truth. Why is it ok for some people to have their family and their personal interests as a priority and it’s not ok for others?
Anyhow….In the words of the great Malcolm Blight; Who gives a rats tossbag about a little bit of coin when it comes to setting up your club for a chance at a premiership.
GT is one of the people who played a huge role in creating the culture and the team ethos at our footy club which Ross Lyon was fortunate enough to inherit. We didn’t see players wanting to leave the club or be traded at the end of 2007 or 2008 did we? The players would have probably stayed loyal to St Kilda, but the administration were so inept (and desperate) that they put them on ridiculous contracts which created the disaster that saw us lose BJ and Dal and send us back down to the bottom of the ladder.
Scollop wrote: ↑Wed 20 Oct 2021 9:10pm
Stop talking through your hat and with that green eyed monster in your head. If GT had done what you say he did, why didn’t the legal system see it that way?
Too many vendettas and too many envious people around here when it comes to the truth. Why is it ok for some people to have their family and their personal interests as a priority and it’s not ok for others?
Anyhow….In the words of the great Malcolm Blight; Who gives a rats tossbag about a little bit of coin when it comes to setting up your club for a chance at a premiership.
GT is one of the people who played a huge role in creating the culture and the team ethos at our footy club which Ross Lyon was fortunate enough to inherit
Green eyed monster...legal system??? What are you talking about? What have I said that makes you think I'm jealous of GT or that he did something illegal?
Family??? Personal interests??? WTF are you on about?
In terms of your fvcked up quoting, of course the man receiving a million dollars would not give a rats. Stupid.
GT did play a huge role. Such a role that dyed in the wool sainters cannot agree on. Top bloke, just ask him.
