Don Pyke, coaching means being involved during the game

[Apsaalooke]

I’d suggest he had no idea as it looked like hawthorn had 19 men out there.

At the game I thought so too. Even did a count at one stage!

 

[Crowboto]

He was certainly quicker but more skilful? I saw him run half the length of the field with the ball then run out of ideas in a blind pocket and kick it straight up in the air, and his goal shooting was hit and miss too. He often went missing for weeks at a time as well. Good player but I think our memories of him are a bit selective. Plus the others mentioned have been there 5 minutes so we basically know nothing about them yet.

You obviously didnt watch the Brisbane game on the weekend lol!

 

[MRB37]

He was certainly quicker but more skilful? I saw him run half the length of the field with the ball then run out of ideas in a blind pocket and kick it straight up in the air, and his goal shooting was hit and miss too. He often went missing for weeks at a time as well. Good player but I think our memories of him are a bit selective. Plus the others mentioned have been there 5 minutes so we basically know nothing about them yet.

He and McGovern brought an element of chaos and unpredictabality to our forward line we haven't been able to replicate. Murphy can do the defensive work of Charlie, but is light years behind him offensively. Eddie has basically taken up Gov's role of crashing every pack he gets near, but before when we had Gov doing that Betts and CC were on the ground, now it's Murphy.

Unfortunately for us McAdam got injured, I'd love to see McAdam creating chaos aerialy, while Betts and Stengle run around at ground level.

 

[Crowboto]

Idk how we can have no speed when a third of our starting 22 are outside runners.

And the other 2 thirds are downhill skiers.

 

[Doc_]

Whoever is our sports psychologist, they need sacking.
If we dont have one, we need one NOW!!!
I have no doubt this is all between the ears.

 

[Pugsley]

Whoever is our sports psychologist, they need sacking.
If we dont have one, we need one NOW!!!
I have no doubt this is all between the ears.

Get Trevor Dodd back. The man knows his stuff.

 

[jackster83]

Whoever is our sports psychologist, they need sacking.
If we dont have one, we need one NOW!!!
I have no doubt this is all between the ears.

It's obvious we are s**t scared of Hawthorn. We don't like playing teams that are physical or unsociable, except for Port who are our main rivals. We like playing teams that allow us to play keepings off.

Tex used to play well against them but hasn't been sighted against them since Mitchell gave him that accidental, not-accidental corkie a few years back. Likewise Betts, Laird and Smith.

 

[Apsaalooke]

You obviously didnt watch the Brisbane game on the weekend lol!

You're right I hadn't. Wow, so much for our player development compared to Brisbane's.

 

[CrowinNT]

Whoever is our sports psychologist, they need sacking.
If we dont have one, we need one NOW!!!
I have no doubt this is all between the ears.

I tend to agree
There seems to be no hunger
Its okay to say we’ve had a good pre season bla bla
It’s like it is a superficial belief
Without substance
Our AFLW women’s team are true
Look at their dedication and belief between the ears
It’s real

 

[Bovo]

I blame the players more than coaches. For that game at least. We seemed to be in control and then just turned it over. Pykes job is to stamp that habit out.

 

[1990crow]

Come back to me in 6 games. If we’ve only won 3 games or less count me in.

 

[kirky]

To beat Hawthorn you need to run and spread and exploit their weakness, lack of speed. Carry the ball in numbers, take the game on through the middle and create space in the forward 50. If you go slow you need guys like Smith and Tex to be kicking goals from outside 50. If you go slow and try to go deep inside 50 with long high kicks you're going to lose.

Exactly. Lack of structure going forward and forwards expecting the ball to go over the back for a joe the goose goal. Not against Hawthorn - you have to work harder against this mob than just about every other team.

We have Camporeale and Hart as midfield and forward coaches - boy, need to lift their games.

Now Matt Crouch is a very good player however when you are 40m out from goal, you go back and dob it. You don't then kick it 25m sideways to a player in not a better position and then don't execute the kick properly. Just dumb football.

Clarkson reminds me of being the AFLs equivalent to that master coach, Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots. You have system and structures in place no matter who comes in, they all learn it.

 

[Cap]

Now Matt Crouch is a very good player however when you are 40m out from goal, you go back and dob it. You don't then kick it 25m sideways to a player in not a better position and then don't execute the kick properly. Just dumb football.

We did this in the first to and gave up the ascendancy. We made some utter bizzare decisions in the forward 60, including not taking shot and doing risky kicks and or utterly horrid kicks into the forward 40.

 

[mistylake]

He lost the players by the start of the 2018 season and he will never regain them.

Looks like it with Saturday’s no show.
All the talk over summer, the media performances saying we’ll finish top etc and then the players don’t turn up to their home ground, round one. It’s more than concerning.

 

[mistylake]

A full clean out after round one.
And we bag port supporters.

You don’t find it mildly pathetic that Clarkson did exactly the same thing to us again and we didn’t consider doing anything different to counter it?

 

[Pea Nut]

Exactly. Lack of structure going forward and forwards expecting the ball to go over the back for a joe the goose goal. Not against Hawthorn - you have to work harder against this mob than just about every other team.

We have Camporeale and Hart as midfield and forward coaches - boy, need to lift their games.

Now Matt Crouch is a very good player however when you are 40m out from goal, you go back and dob it. You don't then kick it 25m sideways to a player in not a better position and then don't execute the kick properly. Just dumb football.

Clarkson reminds me of being the AFLs equivalent to that master coach, Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots. You have system and structures in place no matter who comes in, they all learn it.

Today's very brief press conference with Campo and he wanted to hang his hat on the contested ball numbers that we won and the amount of inside 50's we had. I wanted to scream. I'm at a complete loss as to why we went back to a dry well and tried the same thing again. We got the same result. People talk about Clarko being a master coach but the stubbornness or stupidity of other coaches is what keeps him held in that regard. His list has glaring faults and their is only a couple of clubs willing to expose them. And surprise surprise, our club ain't one of them.

 

[Pea Nut]

Come back to me in 6 games. If we’ve only won 3 games or less count me in.

This isn't about getting the pitchforks out, it's about pre game and in game coaching. Which based on Saturdays game, is a real problem.

 

[Pea Nut]

I blame the players more than coaches. For that game at least. We seemed to be in control and then just turned it over. Pykes job is to stamp that habit out.

That was down to system. We have the team to annihilate the Hawks and didn't use any of it. Round 1 games are always hot early, and known to be scrappy after a long summer. We went in with a gameplan that required absolutely elite skills and execution. Lacks foresight.

 

[TexForPM]

You don’t find it mildly pathetic that Clarkson did exactly the same thing to us again and we didn’t consider doing anything different to counter it?

Players can't execute, it's on them.

 

[TrainRoo32]

Exactly. Lack of structure going forward and forwards expecting the ball to go over the back for a joe the goose goal. Not against Hawthorn - you have to work harder against this mob than just about every other team.

We have Camporeale and Hart as midfield and forward coaches - boy, need to lift their games.

Now Matt Crouch is a very good player however when you are 40m out from goal, you go back and dob it. You don't then kick it 25m sideways to a player in not a better position and then don't execute the kick properly. Just dumb football.

Clarkson reminds me of being the AFLs equivalent to that master coach, Bill Belichick of the New England Patriots. You have system and structures in place no matter who comes in, they all learn it.

I mean how does Ricky Henderson, look like a genuine AFL best 18 player.
I’d take a punt no other coach would have got that out of him.

 

[TrainRoo32]

Looks like it with Saturday’s no show.
All the talk over summer, the media performances saying we’ll finish top etc and then the players don’t turn up to their home ground, round one. It’s more than concerning.

This was what I was thinking, surely round 1 you’re at home you’re up and about.....

Gutting

 

[Rotayjay]

I think the jury is in regarding two things about Pyke:

1. He is very much systems-based (obvious from his own words and also his actions)

2. He is a s**t motivator. There was once a time when this was the coach's primary job, and in a way it still is. We are fired up sometimes and at other times we are asleep. Often for an entire match, and most notoriously on Grand Final Day.

 

[Pea Nut]

I think the jury is in regarding two things about Pyke:

1. He is very much systems-based (obvious from his own words and also his actions)

2. He is a s**t motivator. There was once a time when this was the coach's primary job, and in a way it still is. We are fired up sometimes and at other times we are asleep. Often for an entire match, and most notoriously on Grand Final Day.

Looking in from the outside and considering what is said in the media from coaches and players, many coaches would now be new age in their messaging in an attempt to get consistency in performance. If you go old school and try and really fire the players up pre-game that eventually gets old and you dont generate any sort of response after a while. So a lot would be on the players themselves to be ready to go, which is probably fair enough when they are being paid the salaries they are and the fact that they are playing football in front of 50 000 people. I know though myself in any sport I've played, when you see a team mate laughing and joking and ******* around like Atkins was on the weekend just before they ran through the banner, that used to annoy the hell out of me. That's not the right head space. You should be breathing fire once you cross that white line.

 

[Scorpus]

I know though myself in any sport I've played, when you see a team mate laughing and joking and ******* around like Atkins was on the weekend just before they ran through the banner, that used to annoy the hell out of me. That's not the right head space. You should be breathing fire once you cross that white line.

I remember a time I was playing a match, we were a very poor side and we had just won our first game of the season. I was pumped, absolutely stoked we finally managed to beat someone. Teammates were less than impressed with my celebrations, told me to "calm down" and all sorts of s**t.

It was at that moment I truly realized why we were so s**t. It wasn't because our skills were awful, it was because most of my teammates gave zero *s whether they won or lost.

 

[Pea Nut]

I remember a time I was playing a match, we were a very poor side and we had just won our first game of the season. I was pumped, absolutely stoked we finally managed to beat someone. Teammates were less than impressed with my celebrations, told me to "calm down" and all sorts of s**t.

It was at that moment I truly realized why we were so s**t. It wasn't because our skills were awful, it was because most of my teammates gave zero ****s whether they won or lost.

I've never understood why anyone with that mentality plays sport. If you just want to get fit, go join a gym. Play to win. Even if it's D grade indoor cricket.