Sack pain burns Grant Thomas

[Huzzad]

Craig Hutchison | April 19, 2009 12:00am
http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/ ... 72,00.html

GRANT Thomas has opened old wounds with former St Kilda president Rod Butterss, accusing him and the former board of willing the team to fail. In his weekly blog on wwos.com.au, Thomas was asked about his sudden exit as Saints coach and claimed Butterss was "on a mission to terminate" him from the time they fell out in 2003.

He said his assistants felt they were being "willed to fail".

Thomas said there was not a lot he would have changed about his coaching style but accused the former board of penny pinching.

"I would have embarrassed the board into more money for the great list we had to prevent injuries and assist recovery. They were too focused on making money rather than providing support to the football department. When I fell out, we were never going to get their support.

"My assistant coaches felt we were being willed to fail, in fact! I was and still (am) disappointed that we couldn't finish the job and feel the club has wasted two years."

On his relationship with Butterss, Thomas wrote: "I fell out with the president and some of his assistants in '03 over things that were extremely detrimental to the football club.

"We never recovered and he was on a mission to terminate me for the next three years. Unfortunately for him we performed so well until that fateful final against Melbourne (in the 2006 elimination final) when we were beaten."

And Thomas hinted the attack was a taste of things to come in the long-running war between him and Butterss.

"That's the very very short answer. One day all will be revealed -- hopefully after a Saints premiership," he said.

Butterss was unimpressed with the attack.

"He is sad," Butterss said.

Thomas took the Saints to the finals three times - including preliminary finals in '04 and '05.

[Dal_Santos_Gal]

Oh FFS, why when we are doing so well on field, the old GT crap comes to the forefront.

He does not have to comment but chooses to, give it break GT, its becoming a bad case of sour grapes. You claim to be a saints man but yet you continue to put bad press in the papers because you can't keep your mouth shut about the past.

FFS build a bridge and get over it and if you can't build it then learn to swim.


I am sorry but this is how I feel, we are doing sooo bloody well, the club don't need his shtye.

[clarky449]

It is pretty much what he said in the chat, am i correct?

[ace]

I thought Butterss was a hopeless character in North Park.

[GSG]

The guy is an absolute tool. If memory serves me right, he was the one who wanted to control everything, including the football department. All of a sudden, he had nothing to do with anything that went on in the Club. He was also the driving force to give Tassie the flick (Hawthorn is laughing all the way to the bank now!!!!), consequently resulting in considerable loss of Tassie membership.
As for Butterss – if it wasn’t for him, we’d be the new Gold Coast team now. He made us enough money to survive without any hand-outs from the AFL, and for the invisible man – Westaway - to be able to spend some money now.
Please GT p….. off - go away

[saint1974]

Fair dinkum Grant learn from one of the greatest coaches of all timeKevin Sheedy, you dont hear him bad mouthing his ex board or club.
Thats the difference between a professional and ego trips.
I liked Grant a lot at his time at StKilda and he achieved some great results but time has moved on,enjoy your position in the media but dont drag our club down.
Take a big breath and enjoy our year like the rest of us you will be looked on more highly if you do this.

Strenghth Through Loyality

[stinger]

It is pretty much what he said in the chat, am i correct?

yep....it's just taken the scum press awhile to catch up......typical....

[saintsRrising]

It is pretty much what he said in the chat, am i correct?

Yes..the second sentence is:

In his weekly blog on wwos.com.au,

[Joffa Burns]

A couple of interesting points I noticed in that blog that seem to sum up GT. Caro got me sacked at the Age and the comment from the assistants that the impression was the board was willing them to fail. Always seems to be someone else’s fault when GT is concerned. I’ve been sacked from jobs in my youth and whilst I may have felt unfairly dealt with at the time, hindsight and maturity have taught me I was to blame and not the other party.

[SirDog]

I enjoyed GT's contribution to St.Kilda so I find it hard to knock him. I only wish that he would stop being so overtly bitter towards St.Kilda. Obviously it is personal and it hurts him which is probably indicative of how much he loves the club. If he didn't have any passion for the Saints he would have moved on, like any relationship.

[GrumpyOne]

He's gone.

They're both gone.

Move on.

[hotdish]

It is pretty much what he said in the chat, am i correct?

Yes..the second sentence is:

In his weekly blog on wwos.com.au,

Hutchy has manipulated this article to a tee!

He doesn't write a weekly blog! He writes a weekly article.

The quote was taken from a chat session that is not weekly, it was a one off. The only chat he's had in his year of writing for WWOS.

Storm in a teacup as usual lol

[bigcarl]

I only wish that he would stop being so overtly bitter towards St.Kilda.

the bitterness seems to be directed not at st kilda, but at his "mate" RB. if only they'd been able to work together and put the club before their personal egos.

... but it is water under the bridge now.

personally i give both of them due credit for the strong state we in on the field.

[claystreet]

He's gone.

They're both gone.

Move on.

I agree wholeheartedly about time this idiot Thomas moved on and likewise this forum from posting GT and buttnose dribble.

THEY ARE NOT STKFC THEY ARE NOBODIES LOOKING FOR AN EGO BOOST

[older saint]

LEt it go man!

If he keeps going on about it for much longer he will be our version of Kevin Bartlett!

[saintspremiers]

well very few people are backing up GT aren't they?

Sad thing is, is that it may indeed be more of RB's fault than GT, but time and again, we hear GT sooking publically to all and sundry about his problems.

[saint66au]

RB had to cost-cut back then..we'd be bloody broke now if he didnt.

[mbogo]

When I saw this thread I thought poor Grant may have hurt his testicles ...... at least this would have been a new story

[bigred]

I wish GT would just shut the hell up...I mean seriously. WTF

[bobmurray]

I like reading about the RB and GT fued....

I wish one of them would come clean and give us the juice..

I'm sick of these hints of the rift that developed ,i want the full story....

I also want to know what Waldron did to cause him to move on...

[stinger]

I like reading about the RB and GT fued....

I wish one of them would come clean and give us the juice..

I'm sick of these hints of the rift that developed ,i want the full story....

I also want to know what Waldron did to cause him to move on...

i will tell you one day.....after the main players are dead and the laws of libel don't apply....

[stinger]

deleted

[bigcarl]

I like reading about the RB and GT fued. I wish one of them would come clean and give us the juice.

needs a premiership first.

[meher baba]

It was self-indulgent and unhelpful for GT to say anything about it at all.

But, then, it was also a total beat-up by the beat-up merchant extraordinaire of the AFL journalistic world.

Anyway, why should any of this bother us right now when we are riding high??

[Legendary]

In Thomas' defence (and I can't stand the guy), he was asked a direct question on his online blog about what he regretted about his time at the Saints.

The journalists did the rest.


It's not like he set out to whinge.