I'm really surprised Gowans was let go - stood down. Maybe there is more under the surface than we know, don't under estimate the impact recovering from prostate cancer can have, not just physically, but mentally as well.. He seems an ideal coach though, a bit in the mould of Crocker, with his relationship building mentality.
Ferg too is attempting that similar approach, more now than ever it seems. It is so nuanced though, it sits more naturally with some than others. It still has to be balanced with mutual respect and outcomes. Good coaches get natural buy-in, other coaches get it with varying degrees of clunkiness and it becomes more an imitation of buy-in.
I do wonder what the fabric of the team will be like after Shaun Hampson moves on to North, and what might have been the catalyst, if one exists. As we've seen, it may be the much talked about review is a review in motion, not necessarily waiting for the printed form for actions to take place. I suspect an AFLW Club environment has enormous challenges, some of which are not necessarily at play over at the men's side. For this reason it can be a more delicately moulded environment, where, coming purely from the men's environment, it takes a lot of growth and understanding.
I know what you mean. The best coaches I have worked with seem to have an almost intangible ability to bring out the best in a group dynamic, difficult to do with dealing with varying personalities within, but as you say it seems natural for some coaches. The things I put this down to a wealth of experience, being technically savvy, whether they were past players or not, it didn't matter, they had incredible technical knowledge and obviously were great communicators.
The other coaches were often too pally or too demanding or inconsistent and not able to set the tone and rules, expectations and boundaries that the best coaches would where non negotiable or core values seemed to fall into place easily.
Re review, definitely there are the nuances in mens and women's that experience helps. I wonder if Lloyd may bring in Scott to consult on our review as would be of value for us to do this. You don't always have out of contract coaches familiar with coaching the modern game available to do this.
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