Analysis Ross Lyon

Silent Alarm

sack Lyon
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Jul 9, 2010
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The appointment of Ross Lyon was when this footy club got serious. It was a bizarre day in footy but a momentous one – Freo was finally bold, cut-throat, and full of intent. It showed that the administration had some balls and nous. It was cunning. Ross Lyon is no doubt Freo's best ever coach, he was an absolute coup, and you couldn't even imagine who would've been next in line if Schwabby and co. were still in charge.

However, people are rightfully starting to get confused and angry over Ross Lyon.

Most of this lays in his selection policy, which is essentially picking the same 25 core players on rotation, persevering with them, and constantly showing (blind) faith in guys like Matt DeBoer (who should be good for six or seven games a season as depth, but not a walk up in the 22).

This isn't reactionary to the Eagles loss. Whatever. They're a bunch of pretenders. But the discontent is becoming pretty noticeable. As it bloody well should be, too.

So – what is the assessment of Ross Lyon? Was he the best Fremantle could've gotten? Is he the best for Fremantle? Will he forever be the bridesmaid?
 
Aug 20, 2014
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The appointment of Ross Lyon was when this footy club got serious. It was a bizarre day in footy but a momentous one – Freo was finally bold, cut-throat, and full of intent. It showed that the administration had some balls and nous. It was cunning. Ross Lyon is no doubt Freo's best ever coach, he was an absolute coup, and you couldn't even imagine who would've been next in line if Schwabby and co. were still in charge.

However, people are rightfully starting to get confused and angry over Ross Lyon.

Most of this lays in his selection policy, which is essentially picking the same 25 core players on rotation, persevering with them, and constantly showing (blind) faith in guys like Matt DeBoer (who should be good for six or seven games a season as depth, but not a walk up in the 22).

This isn't reactionary to the Eagles loss. Whatever. They're a bunch of pretenders. But the discontent is becoming pretty noticeable. As it bloody well should be, too.

So – what is the assessment of Ross Lyon? Was he the best Fremantle could've gotten? Is he the best for Fremantle? Will he forever be the bridesmaid?

With this team we will defiantly know by the end of the season. Changes will be happening next preseason.

With how Peel have done and some of our kids that have got games this season have performed, I'm actually less concerned about the future than I was a few months ago.
 

Banker

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May 17, 2014
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There is no doubt Ross has made our club absolutely professional and I doubt other coaches could have turned it around so fast.

However, whats clear he doesn't have a plan B and has complete blind faith in his plan.

The question is who can replace him? When you look at the team it isn't as bad people who like you to think!

Our forward plan is a complete mess, its so predictable its hard to watch.
 

Banker

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May 17, 2014
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There is not a spot above first.

Everyone knows ladder position is wank thanks to the AFL fixturing and bit of luck. Finishing 2nd is as good as finishing 1st, which makes you wonder whats the point of been minor premiers and having that additional pressure to perform.
 
Apr 7, 2010
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Hope you don't mind me changing the prefix SA, not sure autopsy was most appropriate considering his tenure is still well and truly underway.

Currently, we literally could not be better placed for making the grand final, ask me this again in a few months. Call it blind faith if you want but surely he's got something up his sleeve for the finals.
 

Grape Bear

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I think he's done alright. I think that people gloss over that we don't have the best spread of talent that Hawthorn or other teams have, but he's managed to get the best out of the team he has at his disposal and gotten most of his players to play consistent, if not flashy, football. He's brought in a system that has allowed us to punch above our weight and get close to teams that are certainly better than us and are afforded more advantages.

He is a conservative coach at the selection table, and maybe he tends to overvalue fitness over skill given the taxing nature of his primary game plan. I don't think he persists with that game plan purely because he's stubborn, I am more inclined to think that he does it because it's one that plays to our strengths as a list. We've tried to be more attacking, but clearly our skill levels are lacking and we don't have enough players with the footy nous required. if we did not have such a defensive mindset, we would be flogged by more.

As for a replacement - who would you pick to helm the side? Not easy to find a good senior coach these days. He may have been a bridesmaid a few times, but people underestimate the fact that it takes ability to even get there on the day. Apart from Clarkson, who else can boast a better return among the current crop of coaches? As for the next generation of coaches, is there anyone else you can think of that would do a better job with this list than Lyon has?
 

Borderline

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Ross Lyon absolutely was the right appointment. We're a fair drinkum team now, the jumper and logo change, the song change, the Lyon appointment all were a part of that.

Whatever happens now, Lyon has been brilliant for Freo, he's laid the foundations of a successful and ruthless football club going forward. I think we'll all have great respect for him premiership or not. However, there are some serious doubts about his ability to win a flag, and rightly so. He's not going to stray too far from what he knows; small playing squad, few team changes, defensive focus etc. there's not much we can do about that.

If he manages to lead us to the flag in the next 8 weeks or so will determine his true worth as a coach. He's a fantastic coach for turning teams into disciplined, hard-nosed outfits, and delivering consistent top 4 finishes. He'll definitely get another job after his time is up here.

Most of us will agree that our premiership window won't be open after 2016 (hell, there's a good chance this is our last shot at it). I strongly believe Ross shouldn't be at the club too much longer, probably after the end of next year. We can't afford to go down the St Kilda route and push too hard for a flag one year too long as it'll have a serious impact on our team, age wise.
 
Nov 28, 2013
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So we're top of the ladder, in the best position we've ever been in to have a tilt at the flag. Lose a game and we start pointing fingers at the coach.

Maybe wait until the season is over before going down this path.
Absolutely I agree
 

tek87

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Aug 7, 2008
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The appointment of Ross Lyon was when this footy club got serious. It was a bizarre day in footy but a momentous one – Freo was finally bold, cut-throat, and full of intent. It showed that the administration had some balls and nous. It was cunning. Ross Lyon is no doubt Freo's best ever coach, he was an absolute coup, and you couldn't even imagine who would've been next in line if Schwabby and co. were still in charge.

However, people are rightfully starting to get confused and angry over Ross Lyon.

Most of this lays in his selection policy, which is essentially picking the same 25 core players on rotation, persevering with them, and constantly showing (blind) faith in guys like Matt DeBoer (who should be good for six or seven games a season as depth, but not a walk up in the 22).

This isn't reactionary to the Eagles loss. Whatever. They're a bunch of pretenders. But the discontent is becoming pretty noticeable. As it bloody well should be, too.

So – what is the assessment of Ross Lyon? Was he the best Fremantle could've gotten? Is he the best for Fremantle? Will he forever be the bridesmaid?


are you for real? are you trolling? I think you may overrate our list talent. peel are not that great. they have improved and part of that is due to Ross. i rate the match committee picking the team over you any day of this century. form fluctuates but overall you cannot deny the results. we dont have the talent of Hawthorn, sydney , eagles and even port adelaide in my opinion. but yeah lets sack Ross Lyon as well. fair dinkum
 

sproketman

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Aug 6, 2015
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A game based around midfield pressure with a plus one rolling back will work against sides that can't stand up to the pressure and use the ball badly. But if a side can stand up to pressure (Hawthorn) or uses the ball well (Hawthorn again), or if that pressure is off for just a quarter (Richmond, West Coast) what's next? How do you win a game?

The solution seems to be: up the pressure. We did that, and could still only win one quarter.

You can't simply just work harder to win. No matter how fit you are, there will always be a team or two that has the same fitness base as you, and your edge over them has to come from somewhere else. It's not enough to have guys who know when to rollback and fill space, or hit the contest harder with tackling pressure 20 times a game, if the opposition have the same guys, and they can withstand your pressure, and they have better skills.
 

sproketman

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Aug 6, 2015
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we dont have the talent of Hawthorn, sydney , eagles and even port adelaide in my opinion. but yeah lets sack Ross Lyon as well. fair dinkum
Huh? There have been four years of recruiting under Lyon as well as a recruitment model initiated before that period with the same staff - what the hell have we been building to? You can't pass the buck and say the list is crap. This is a list that has been built over seven years, it should be ready.
 

Grape Bear

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But again, that's not a deficiency in game plan but personnel. We just don't have the footskills to play chip-chip the way Hawthorn can. We need a counter to that and the run and carry that our current list can execute under pressure.
 
Jul 5, 2011
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I've commented enough on what I think of selection but I definitely haven't forgotten the pre lyon days of not knowing if we would run out onto the park not wanting to give any effort and lose to a melbourne or if we were switched on.

In short:

So – what is the assessment of Ross Lyon? Was he the best Fremantle could've gotten? Is he the best for Fremantle? Will he forever be the bridesmaid?

1. Yes
2. At the moment? Yes
3. Yes :cry:
 

sproketman

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Aug 6, 2015
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But again, that's not a deficiency in game plan but personnel. We just don't have the footskills to play chip-chip the way Hawthorn can. We need a counter to that and the run and carry that our current list can execute under pressure.
What has been done at the selection table to remedy the skills situation? It's not like it's recently become apparent De Boer can't kick. He's been an ordinary kick since he got here.
 

tek87

Premiership Player
Aug 7, 2008
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A game based around midfield pressure with a plus one rolling back will work against sides that can't stand up to the pressure and use the ball badly. But if a side can stand up to pressure (Hawthorn) or uses the ball well (Hawthorn again), or if that pressure is off for just a quarter (Richmond, West Coast) what's next? How do you win a game?

The solution seems to be: up the pressure. We did that, and could still only win one quarter.

You can't simply just work harder to win. No matter how fit you are, there will always be a team or two that has the same fitness base as you, and your edge over them has to come from somewhere else. It's not enough to have guys who know when to rollback and fill space, or hit the contest harder with tackling pressure 20 times a game if the opposition have the same guys, and they can withstand your pressure, and they have better skills.

this gets back to talent. we have alot of average kicks in our team, not many elite decision makers/kicks ie Mundy, Hill, michael johnson when game fit. we have an elite midfield in terms of winning the ball and have to rely heavily on that advantage and ross's game plan. cant make this change. it is what is. we have to execute extremely well on the day, but man for man we dont match up as well. a premiership this year would be a modern miracle in my eyes. our best shot was 2013 where our best talent minus fyfe were closer to their physical prime. but we have a shot and i am rapt with our relative position. about 99% of media 'experts' expected to slide to 5-8th bracket. hopefully we can do well in finals. bit of realism would not go astray
 

sproketman

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this gets back to talent. we have alot of average kicks in our team, not many elite decision makers/kicks ie Mundy, Hill, michael johnson when game fit. we have an elite midfield in terms of winning the ball and have to rely heavily on that advantage and ross's game plan. cant make this change. it is what is. we have to execute extremely well on the day, but man for man we dont match up as well. a premiership this year would be a modern miracle in my eyes. our best shot was 2013 where our best talent minus fyfe were closer to their physical prime. but we have a shot and i am rapt with our relative position. about 99% of media 'experts' expected to slide to 5-8th bracket. hopefully we can do well in finals. bit of realism would not go astray
It's a waste of a season to play such an old and experienced team and not win the premiership.
 

Grape Bear

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Huh? There have been four years of recruiting under Lyon as well as a recruitment model initiated before that period with the same staff - what the hell have we been building to? You can't pass the buck and say the list is crap. This is a list that has been built over seven years, it should be ready.

We've had later picks in the last four years, and not much luck with our first rounders in that time. Only Sherro and Weller are still here. We've tried to recruit for pace and outside run and goodness knows we've tried to get KPPs through free agency, but you can only control what you can control.
 

sproketman

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We've had later picks in the last four years, and not much luck with our first rounders in that time. Only Sherro and Weller are still here. We've tried to recruit for pace and outside run and goodness knows we've tried to get KPPs through free agency, but you can only control what you can control.
I wouldn't call it luck.
 

Dirty_banchez

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Apr 15, 2013
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Unless Ross has something up his sleeve come finals time, or he is able to remedy our shocking skills then we will not be taking home a flag this year.
 
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