View Full Version : Essendon supporter's attitude towards Knights. What's yours?
Chodders
6 Aug 2008, 11:20
I have a question for Essendon supporters regarding Matthew Knights. I personally think Matthew Knights has done a reasonable job this year and an excellent job over the past couple of months. I thought the process to sack Sheedy and appoint Knights bordered on comical, but since then, the club seems to have pulled their stuff together. Most Essendon supporters I know were divided about sacking Sheeds, some wanted him gone and others wanted him to stay, having said that, they nearly all unanimously were prepared to at least give Knights a go.
That is except for one of my best mates who is an avid Essendon supporter. He nearly jumped out of his 30th story office window when he heard Sheeds was sacked and has hated the board since. His hatred for the board has spilled over into an irrational hatred for Knights. I want to know if these kind of feelings are prevalent amongst other Essendon supporters or are most of you warming to Knights?
I am also wondering, what would it take for Knights to be re-signed to continue coaching after next year. My mate reckons Simon Madden will be on the board from next year and when Knights' contract ends, he will appoint Hird as coach. I personally would have thought that if Essendon were in a similar position next year to where they are this year, you would strongly consider re-signing Knights.
DapperDon
6 Aug 2008, 11:27
I think he has done very well considering the pressure he had from the word go. There are still some of thos Save Essendon tossbags complaining about his every move but they are not true supporters. Sheeds is a club legend, but he is still not bigger than the club itself. It was time for a split and the club has done a great job since his departure.
If what you say is true about Madden, I hope he's not just signing Hird for the sake of him being Hird. If Knights continues to do a good job it would only effect us in the long term to sack him for the sake of it. Get Hird on as his assistant before we go all out and make him coach. We all saw what happened with Timmy Watson.
I have a question for Essendon supporters regarding Matthew Knights. I personally think Matthew Knights has done a reasonable job this year and an excellent job over the past couple of months. I thought the process to sack Sheedy and appoint Knights bordered on comical, but since then, the club seems to have pulled their stuff together. Most Essendon supporters I know were divided about sacking Sheeds, some wanted him gone and others wanted him to stay, having said that, they nearly all unanimously were prepared to at least give Knights a go.
That is except for one of my best mates who is an avid Essendon supporter. He nearly jumped out of his 30th story office window when he heard Sheeds was sacked and has hated the board since. His hatred for the board has spilled over into an irrational hatred for Knights. I want to know if these kind of feelings are prevalent amongst other Essendon supporters or are most of you warming to Knights?
I am also wondering, what would it take for Knights to be re-signed to continue coaching after next year. My mate reckons Simon Madden will be on the board from next year and when Knights' contract ends, he will appoint Hird as coach. I personally would have thought that if Essendon were in a similar position next year to where they are this year, you would strongly consider re-signing Knights.
So far I am very happy with what Knights has done. He seems to also work very well with the leadership group and his development of the younger players is fantastic. A great example of this is Sam Lonergan who some thought might be finished at Essendon.
As for Simon Madden as coach I would then be the one jumping out of a 30 story office block. He coaches at Bernards and is not a good coach.
I have a question for Essendon supporters regarding Matthew Knights. I personally think Matthew Knights has done a reasonable job this year and an excellent job over the past couple of months. I thought the process to sack Sheedy and appoint Knights bordered on comical, but since then, the club seems to have pulled their stuff together. Most Essendon supporters I know were divided about sacking Sheeds, some wanted him gone and others wanted him to stay, having said that, they nearly all unanimously were prepared to at least give Knights a go.
That is except for one of my best mates who is an avid Essendon supporter. He nearly jumped out of his 30th story office window when he heard Sheeds was sacked and has hated the board since. His hatred for the board has spilled over into an irrational hatred for Knights. I want to know if these kind of feelings are prevalent amongst other Essendon supporters or are most of you warming to Knights?
I am also wondering, what would it take for Knights to be re-signed to continue coaching after next year. My mate reckons Simon Madden will be on the board from next year and when Knights' contract ends, he will appoint Hird as coach. I personally would have thought that if Essendon were in a similar position next year to where they are this year, you would strongly consider re-signing Knights.
I, like many, were surprised by Knighters appointment, but i also found out a little bit prior to the announcement so had time to think about it and come to terms with it.
Once i had done that, i was happy to jump on board and support him and the club, as i always have done.
He has done everything he said he would do, has bought a new level of professionalism to the club, is an excellent media performer, knows where he wants to get to and has a plan to get there and is well liked and respected by those that matter.
His match day match ups have been hindered by a long injury list and apart from the odd mistake here and there he has performed beyond my expectations in this department.
One gets the feeling that the players are behind his vision 100% and will do what it takes to get there.
Hasn't put a foot out of place thus far and has a 3 year deal so there is no hurry to resign him yet but assuming things progress as expected then at some stage next year i would think they will start negotiations.
The Madden/Hird rumour is rubbish.
hugorune
6 Aug 2008, 11:48
From what I can tell, Knights is a true professional, and appears to be a really nice bloke as well, although he maintains a strong level of discipline. Good chemistry with Matthew Lloyd in terms of leadership style.
And we all love Sheeds and what he did for the club, but we had to change, and that change has done us a world of good.
I was not so livid that they sacked Sheedy, but the process that the club went through after the sacking. We sacked Sheedy because the coaching carousel was happening and didn't want to be left with the dregs. But we ended up waiting for months on what was perceived to talk to Mark Thompson after the cats season ended. Then a week before the GF we announce Knights, we rejected Harvey who I thought would have been better, and in the end did nothing we said we would do in finding a coach. We finished with what I though, the worst possible choice.
It’s good to be wrong.
I have a question for Essendon supporters regarding Matthew Knights. I personally think Matthew Knights has done a reasonable job this year and an excellent job over the past couple of months. I thought the process to sack Sheedy and appoint Knights bordered on comical, but since then, the club seems to have pulled their stuff together. Most Essendon supporters I know were divided about sacking Sheeds, some wanted him gone and others wanted him to stay, having said that, they nearly all unanimously were prepared to at least give Knights a go.
That is except for one of my best mates who is an avid Essendon supporter. He nearly jumped out of his 30th story office window when he heard Sheeds was sacked and has hated the board since. His hatred for the board has spilled over into an irrational hatred for Knights. I want to know if these kind of feelings are prevalent amongst other Essendon supporters or are most of you warming to Knights?
I am also wondering, what would it take for Knights to be re-signed to continue coaching after next year. My mate reckons Simon Madden will be on the board from next year and when Knights' contract ends, he will appoint Hird as coach. I personally would have thought that if Essendon were in a similar position next year to where they are this year, you would strongly consider re-signing Knights.
I have been one of the few that have been on board with the Knights decision since day 1. I saw a lot of him up close during his Bendigo stint and as development coach and i always thought he was doing a good job with the young blokes.
I have been really happy so far. Yes Knights has made some mistakes as you would expect from a first year coach. Overall i think the new planing he has put in place will pay dividends.
As far as your mate goes he is dreaming if he thinks Hird will be coaching us. Madden may well run for the board but he will have to over throw the whole board to remove Knights from his duties and on top of that if Knights continues to get results then they will look very stupid removing him and replacing him with another unproven coach .
Knights has a three year deal so he has 2009 and 2010 to go.
Chodders
6 Aug 2008, 12:20
Cheers for the responses guys. It is looking more like my mate is in the minority.
I thought the Knights deal was two years with an option for a third. Happy to be corrected though.
The Dustbin
6 Aug 2008, 12:27
As for Simon Madden as coach I would then be the one jumping out of a 30 story office block. He coaches at Bernards and is not a good coach.
Read again:
My mate reckons Simon Madden will be on the board from next year and when Knights' contract ends, he will appoint Hird as coach.
I'm happy with Knights and what he has done thus far, for all of the reasons already mentioned. Actually I'm bloody rapt. :thumbsu:
:)
1 - I was quite upset how the board handled the Sheedy situation
2 - I was not happy when they said they were going to talk to Thompson then went with Knights
3- Very happy with what Knights has done this year
McPhee up forward has worked and something i was wanting for the last three years
Longergan given time in the middle has helped
Lloyds move up the wings has worked well
I'm still a little unsure about his game day coaching. If his plan A doesn't work i don't think he reacts quick enough. He has faith in his gameplan but if something isn't working i believe he should try something else.
DazzlingBomber
6 Aug 2008, 13:31
One of the best things Knights has done this year was just prior to the game against Wet Toast when Lloyd was being bagged by all-and-sundry. Knighter took the heat off him by releasing him into a different role (one that apparently didn't require him to kick big bags of goals) and announcing it to the media. Lloyd promptly repaid him by playing a blinder and hasn't looked back since. Shows a great understanding of both his players and the media.
It seems he has a plan and we need to give him his 3 years to make it work (a la Clarkson) - we won't really know if he was the right choice much before then.
I do agree with previous posters that the whole process of removing Sheeds and appointing Knights. Horsborough acted in a way that was very 'un-Essendon' and threatened to destabilise the club. A credit to everyone else at WindyHill that they've managed to hold it together and push forward.
LocalBomber
6 Aug 2008, 13:41
I was very wary with the mess Essendon created in the early stages with the whole coach sacking of Sheedy and the appointment of Knights. It was so "not" Essendon at all.
I was supportive of the idea that Sheedy had to go. I was over it to be honest. He never played the kids long enough or often enough. Pick em one week and after a reasonble performance, he would drop them the next. While Sheedy was good at developing certain guys, he hindered others I believe, Dyson to me being a perfect example.
Also our consistency was horrible. We would whip some teams one week and then drop the winable ones. Very frustrating all round.
When Knights was appointed, like most, I was shocked. He wasn't my choice at all, not by a long shot. But, I was happy we didn't go down the Daniher path or some other used up coach from another club. I wanted fresh and Hardwick was my pick.
However, I have to say from Day 1 when Knights spoke of what he wanted to do and how he wanted to do it, I was instantly happy. Then the delistings started and I was even happier. Finally, the deadwood was being cleared from our list and it was obvious all these kids we have had on our list were going to get an opportunity to play regularly. Whether they would succeed or not wasn't important, what was important was they were getting their chance.
The draft was good for us I'm convinced last time around. Quality players all of them, and filling gaps we had.
The season didn't start all that well for us, a couple of wins and big losses in the first half were scary, but at least most of the matches were exciting to watch at times. I remember watching our loss against the Bulldogs and was blown away by our speed and our change of game plan. No more backwards crap and kicking all over the place and getting nowhere. It was forward and fast at all costs. We didn't win, but you could see where we were heading. I liked it.
Knights and team obviously knew the direction we were heading, and now the way we play is coming together, and the team are playing together as a team. They all seem genuinely keen to take the game on. No longer are we waiting for Hird to come on and rescue us like so many times before, they are all giving it a go, and its paying off.
When a team challenges us, we respond, and take them on and stay ahead. How many times over the last couple of years with Sheedy did we lose games as teams over ran us? A lot!
We could even make the finals! We won't though, but the fact, that we are a chance is damn exciting.
Next year will be a turning point I'm sure. Hopefully, we can get a fit and healthy team together, not the injuries that have wrecked our year this time around.
Delistings and trades I think at the end of the season will be minimal I think. Knights will be keen to keep this list together, with a couple of obvious changes, and there is not too many changes that need to occur, mostly enhancements.
I think Essendon made the right choice for sure, and I am very much looking forward to the next few years with this team and Knights in control.
GO BOMBERS!
retroparty
6 Aug 2008, 14:09
I really like Matthew Knights. Unlike most Bombers fans, I wasn't suprised when they annouced that Matthew Knights would be the coach next year. I knew they would go with a young, rookie coach. I thought it was the way to go because they would have a better understanding on what it takes to get through a game of football and what attitude to have when playing at the elite level.
I was really happy when we won our first game for the year. I had predicted big things for the team for the year. After the loss to Geelong, I got a bit annoyed with Knights because he didn't make the players accountable. Weeks went by, the team got hit with injury, we got thrashed 3 weeks in a row. Everyone was writing the coach off. There expectations were too high.
In round 10 everything started to turn. The players had more spirit and looked like they wanted to play for this team. Knights started to out some thought into the defence. Our players started to be more accountable. We nearly won the impossible game. Ever since then Knights has had my full support and he definitely has what it takes to be a coach at elite level. He has put some massive wins on the board, including a massive win in the west. Something our team hasn't been able do recently.
He is really good at getting the most out of the players. All the young players are stepping up and older players like Lloydy and Pev have re-invented themselves. Our middle tier players are starting to have a better impact and playing very important roles in the team.
Matthew Knights is a great coach and I hope he stays around for another 20 years.
KingMullet
6 Aug 2008, 14:45
I was happy with Knights from day 1. I think Sheedy got one contract too many and it appeared to me that he was putting his ego before the club. I thought Knights was a good choice as he had worked with a lot of the players before and would have known what they were capable of.
He seems to be able to get the best out of the players.
You Gotta Lovett!
6 Aug 2008, 19:19
It was always going to be sad to see Sheedy go and they were always going to be massive shoes to fill! From day one Knights has been copping criticism from everybody all around the league, with the harshest coming from his own faithful! I for one am very optimistic and was so towards Knights' signing.
I was always saying, "Everybody was saying the same thing about Alastair Clarkson", you just have to give him a go.
I loved his idea's and game plan from the start, now its starting to pay off. I especially love the way he disciplines the players e.g-(my Boy) Andrew Lovett. We suspend one of our better players on our own accord and we come out and beat a top 8 side like collingwood!
The plan has been GO,GO,GO! all season, and have you noticed that our boys' are running out games better than their opponents each week?!
Where's all the criticism now?
So I say good on you Knights for sticking with your plan even in the face of an 8-game losing streak...your a champ! Take us to the Finals in your 1st season and show everyone what your all about!!!
windyhill
6 Aug 2008, 19:23
In my eyes Knights is still in the honeymoon period, probably because I was so happy to see the back of sheedy. I loved watching him play at Richmond and was fortunate to see his last game where we pipped them. Luckily for Knighter the Essendon supporters stayed around to cheer him off as alot of richmond supporters did their usual disappearing act on the siren.
As a coach ? I`m a firm believer that you are only as good as to what is at your disposal but there is no doubt the whole list has responded to his methods. I was rapt with the appointment, enjoyed the "save Essendon" wankers going into rage with all the sack the board talk. We are well set for the future.
Windas_Magic
6 Aug 2008, 19:27
When i first heard Knights would be coach i was a little disappointed to be honest, just because i was so excited about getting Dimma back.
But ever since pre-season and the NAB Cup, i've backed him 100% and looking back now, i think we couldn't have made a better appointment than Matty Knights :thumbsu:
I think there was a certain amount of shock from most Bomber fans initially, mainly because Knights had been in the background through the whole process.
However, unless you were in the room listening to their presentations, it's hard to say why one option would be better than the other as a person on the outside.
I did have a slight preference away from Damien Hardwick on the simple basis that he'd had less of a leadership role at Essendon in his days as a player than Matthew Lloyd, and that didn't sit well with me.
When Knights was appointed I've got to say I was quite happy. This was a guy that knew our young guys better than anybody, and, in listening to his first press conference, his intended plans for the side seemed to fit the direction I wanted the club to go.
We've seen his plans in effect from day one, he's rode some bumps, and is going to come out as having done quite a reasonable job in his first season all things considering.
We've come a long way in 2008, and I can't help but think about what we're up to doing in 2009.
B-Bomber
6 Aug 2008, 20:24
Originally I was pro-sheedy but as it drew closer to the time I knew in my gut that Sheeds had to go. Sheeds was all I'd known (I'm an 80s baby) so it was very much a surreal experience to learn that something that was just always there during my life had suddenly changed! Anyways... I was very hopeful of either a Bomber Thompson or a Mark Williams being our coach next as there was a lot of talk of the club luring one of them away with a big pay packet however, I was happy to settle for Hardwick if they couldn't be bought...
When they annouced Knights I wasn't disapointed so much as numb, didn't really feel anything. I'd like the guy as the bendigo coach, had heard him on the radio and thought he could be a good senior coach one day but didn't expect Essendon to hire him for our top job. I also wanted someone who had been away from the club for a while so they would bring something fresh -- I was concerned Knights wouldn't really bring this (I knew this was very wrong very quickly).
However, I decided to give him a chance and listened to what he had to say and have been one of his biggest fans ever since. I haven't waivered in my faith in Knighta and his "utopia" since Bolts and Heff announced their retirement last year pretty much. So itr was more getting over the shock of Sheeds being gone then anything.
HighettBomber
6 Aug 2008, 20:38
I was very annoyed that Sheedy was sacked when we were still a chance at playing finals. I also think Sheedy was doing a reasonable job and considering the high percentage of coaches that never do well, I thought it was a significant risk to get rid of a proven coach.
When Knights was appointed i thought it was a bit strange as Bendigo hadn't been doing all that well and he apparently had a pretty ordinary record prior to coming to Essendon, he also came from a club with a poor culture. I muched preferred him to Michael Voss however, I would have been majorly pissed off if we employed a coach with no experience at coaching.
Having said this, i also thought he was doing a good job bringing along some of our younger players and was willing to admist that Essendon Boards have donme a particularly good job over a long period. Since starting I think he has been excellent, he has stuck to his guns and we have come through a shockling run with injuries looking very good. If we had reasonable luck in this regard I think we would be playing finals this year.
mark1881
7 Aug 2008, 13:31
Sheedy was greedy in his last few years desperately trying to buy himself a premiership before Hird retired. Decisions like Zantuck, Cole, Heffernan were all ridiculously bad choices. His time was up and it was as fairytale as it could have been. Its not EFC's responsibility to wait around for sheedy to be ready to retire whilst the playing list falls to bits. I love Sheedy and all his done but his last couple of years were terrible.
As for Knights, I have nothing but praise for him. These are the qualities he has that I have seriously admired.
1. Speaks very well to the media
2. Is honest and open about everything without giving too much away
3. He's delisted and will delist (retire off) some Essendon players that have little left to offer the EFC as a listed player
4. Understands our younger players and older players on an equal par
5. Does not play favorites between players
6. Sticks to his guns
7. Has tried something different with regards to coming to a struggling (performance wise) club (i.e. go all out attack instead of defending alah Terry Walace style)
8. Handled the pressure of the sheedy/hird retirements perfectly
.
.
.etc etc etc I could go on for days
Sheedy was greedy in his last few years desperately trying to buy himself a premiership before Hird retired.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't winning a premiership what all clubs strive for? Why should Sheedy's way of thinking be any different - whilst I'm sure Hird was just as desperate for that 3rd premiership medal.
Players like Pike, Barnes, Hardwick, etc were the 'risks' that paid off at clubs - and obviously Sheedy (and no doubt the panel of coaches and recruiters) thought that we were merely a senior player or two away from glory when we picked up the likes of Allan, Murphy, etc.
Hindsight is great, but Sheedy was only doing all that he could to win what we and all clubs want - yet at the expense of a late draft pick, and not a valuable first or second round pick.
wanted sheeds gone (in the nicest possible way)
wanted hardwick in (in front of all other comers)
surprised but not dismayed when knights appointed (knew stuff all abt his coaching abilities or lack of)
grew vastly in my estimation after sticking to his gameplan implementation & giving the boys a couple of royal roasting (im sure what we didnt see was what actually made the diff)
seasons end will cast my vote but to date alls looking good but want to see what he does this off season regards delistings & drafting
Ludwig van Bertstare
8 Aug 2008, 14:29
I was pretty surprised it was announced considering it was 'confirmed' by Channel 10 the night before that Hardwick had been given the job. I was kind of disappointied it wasn't Dimma. I always said I'd support Knights no matter what during his time at Essendon and I'm sticking with it.
He's put in a new and exciting gameplan that our players are slowly adapting too. Yes, he's made some mistakes but all rookie coaches make them.
All I wanted is Sheedy gone because it was clear for years his time was up and I'm just thankful we put in a smart coach with a great gameplan to lead the way to our next premiership(s).
mark1881
8 Aug 2008, 14:35
MoeJoe - Sheedy had a better chance of picking up a young player with a late draft pick and turning him into a good player than he did with making Zantuck or Cole any sort've player. You mentioned a few names that were risks that paid off. They had all proven they could play the game at the highest level and play well. Zantuck and Cole proved peanuts in there times at other clubs. They were disgraceful decisions and just an attempt at a quick fix. A poor attempt at that.