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Matthews Topic

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Danni

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....just to start a new topic as it the other one seems to have deviated of the original topic.....


Personally I don't understand alot of Matthews 'tactics'. His penchant for blooding young players in important games, and dismantling successful line ups has left me with quite a sour taste in my mouth. That along with his 'just like a politician, never answer a question if you can waffle about something else' attitude with the media doesn't make him very appealing.

Tho he does it. And I think there are a number of reasons for that, and it all comes down to the Club itself.

When they hired Matthews he was hailed as 'the Messiah' after the very forgetable 1998 season. He was given carte blanche in choosing his support staff and how he ran the show. The Club gave him the power to do what he is doing, and not making him accountable.

And unfortunatly that is the way our Club seems to work. They are not in touch with the supporters and their concerns, or praises about what is going on.

When has anyone turned around in the Social Club to find a Board Member or Football Staff member there, saying 'g'day mate.....' and having a beer with the supporters??

Last Saturday night, the Club finally heard the supporters views on the team and the coaching. They couldn't help but hear it. 1500+ people voicing it rather loudly in the Social Club during and after the game.

From that night, and disucussions with other Lions fans the general consensus seems to be:

If Matthews is serious about us winning the Flag this year (something our club desperatley needs to do) then the fact that he is still getting outcoached for at least one qtr in each game is very worrying.

As he was able to coach us to 10 straight wins in 1999, what has happened since to stop that momentum? Is it the players attitudes or skills? If so, once again it is Matthews who hand picked the support staff to work in those areas, so ultimately the responsability comes back to him. Or is it the changes in line up's and tactics by Matthews?


I was talking to some people at the local footy club the other day, and one very passionate lady was saying "...if I have to listen to him say one more time 'we lost because the other team kicked more goals and points than us', I am going to scream"....', and, "....oh gawd, just to see the man get angry for once, or show happiness, or SOMETHING... would give me more confidence in him...but the fact that he just never says ANYTHING of substance really alienates me".

I can understand exactly where she was coming from. And I think so can a number of other people.
 
I've already had a fairly decent say on this topic - so I won't cover all of it again (at this stage at least
wink.gif
).

Needless to say, I believe, at this stage, Matthews will have us as a genuine premiership contender for 2002.

I don't think our club "really needs" a premiership this season. It's obviously desireable, but I don't think "really needs" fits the equation - we're a young side, not an ageing one with years running against it.

I am prepared to be patient, at this stage, and made a judgement of Matthews coaching at a later date.

Just because there was an uproar in the social club - well, I've heard a lot of things in social clubs, ranging from "Lambert is one of the worst players to play 200 games" (
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), to "Voss is the softest player to ever win a Brownlow and captain an AFL side" (
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).

Then again, these people could know something about football, couldn't they?
rolleyes.gif


People need to be patient, at this stage at least. Alarmism is not a good thing at this stage, IMO. Give the team, and the coach some support - at this stage of proceedings at least.

If we have an average season (or a total meltdown even earlier), then it is time to ask why. People might think that asking "why" at this stage, might prevent those two scenarios from happening - however, it could just as likely make it worse (check '98). At any rate, I doubt that either of those scenarios will occur.

If people have a problem with Matthews, they should say EXACTLY what the problem is, HOW they believe it is adversely affecting the team/club, and EXACTLY what they would do to remedy this situation. I think that is only fair. So far, very few people have been able to offer those criteria in discussion.

If people believe Matthews is not the answer, and that he should go, they should at least have an explaination for what should them be the replacement system.

Otherwise, you are jumping out of an aeroplane, before checking to see if you have a parachute.
 
Olmy you are assuming that I was suggesting the coach be sacked. That isn't what I said at all. What I said was that people are disallusioned, and a couple of the reasons why. And one of the reasons that they are frustrated is that they KNOW what they have a problem with, but have NO way of getting the information they would like to have. And that is because of the culture of our club at the moment.

I am not seeing alarmism and people leaping out of planes.

I am seeing some very frustrated people. People who are putting their hearts and money into the club, and not getting the results we know the team is capable of.

Matthews has been outcoached on quite a number of occasions in the last 12 months. If you choose to be patient, that is fine.

But it is just as fine for others to choose not to be, and to vent their frustrations.

Not everyone is ever going to agree, and that is fine too.
 
I have wanted Matthews to be sacked since last year. If we don't beat the Kangas tomorrow, one would think he will get close to quitting or the sack. I could come up with about 50 reasons on why Matthew's is a poor coach.

------------------
Go Hoppers!!
 

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We did beat the Roos, but it was a very poor game.
Danni, I too was at the social club that night. I was seated amongst QSFL players and staff.
They were perplexed.
The whole crowd was very vocal, loud and angry at times. Venting their spleen at Matthews decisions ,not at the players.
You are right, people want answers. They are not asking that Matthews be sacked, they are saying he should be accountable.Just like you said. These people I sat with were footy people,they had an extended knowledge of our game, from a playing and coaching perspective. It was good to know we are all not stupid in our thoughts. That others are frustrated with the happenings as we are.
The forward line tweeking didn't work today.
They need a forward skills coach, to get the buggers to kick straight. We have a coach for everything else.
 
Originally posted by Lionel Lyon:
Talk about, "damned if you do and damned if you don't." We won by 9.6 for cryin' out loud!
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I think what Anna means is that our opposition was not up to strength (no Carey,Martin, Harvey)& therefore we were expected to win. More work required on our goal kicking skills i.e set shots from 45 metres on 45 degree or tighter angles.
 
Originally posted by SpecialBruce:
I was stumped why Michael was playing Full Forward.
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I think he should be playing down back.

As far as I can see, Brown, Lynch, Notting, and also Bradshaw (when he gets his confidence back), are our best options up forward.

I hope Bradshaw makes a return soon - I just reckon he needs a run in the local comp to build up a bit of form.

A backline consisting of Michael, Leppitsch, Kennedy, Pike, C.Scott, and either Johnson or Shattock looks extremely good on paper.
 
Originally posted by anna:
They need a forward skills coach, to get the buggers to kick straight. We have a coach for everything else.
Click to expand...

Wasn't Mark Bayes recruited last season to join the coaching panel?

I reckon he used to be a pretty decent kick, so maybe he is the man to do the job.

On another point, it's good to see C.Lambert as an assistant. I reckon it's good for the club.

Perhaps they should also look to remove the bad blood with Merrett, by offering him some sort of assistant's role (perhaps skills - he was an ok kick after all).

R.Osborne is another who could possibly teach them a thing or two about kicking - who also has a link to the club's history.
 
Originally posted by Danni:
Olmy you are assuming that I was suggesting the coach be sacked. That isn't what I said at all. What I said was that people are disallusioned, and a couple of the reasons why. And one of the reasons that they are frustrated is that they KNOW what they have a problem with, but have NO way of getting the information they would like to have. And that is because of the culture of our club at the moment.

I am not seeing alarmism and people leaping out of planes.

I am seeing some very frustrated people. People who are putting their hearts and money into the club, and not getting the results we know the team is capable of.

Matthews has been outcoached on quite a number of occasions in the last 12 months. If you choose to be patient, that is fine.

But it is just as fine for others to choose not to be, and to vent their frustrations.

Not everyone is ever going to agree, and that is fine too.
Click to expand...

Fair enough Danni, that was a well reasoned response. (I will say though, that 'some' people seem intent on seeing Matthews out as coach - just judging by some of the articles written on this board).

In regards to Matthews approach to the media . . .

The way I see it, most coaches don't really say too much in their post-game conferences. At least, not of analytical value. Kevin Sheedy is one of the worst, Matthews is also pretty keen to avoid making too many open points.

On the other hand, you have people like M.Blight and M.Williams who are prepared to single players out in the media.

I don't particularly like either of those methods of dealing with media conferences, but that's sometimes just the way things are.

T.Wallace would have to be one of the more articulate speakers as a coach - but even he puts his foot in his mouth on occasions. Parkin is/was another who had a good grasp of the media - bet then again, it wasn't like as if he had all the answers on the field, all of the time, either.

Matthews, even in his time with the Pies, had a reputation for keeping his cards close to his chest.

It might be frustrating - but I don't know what it is that can exactly be done about it.

Apart from asking the man to change his style, I can't see him changing his ways. In any event, such a request would most likely be laughed down by those concerned (whether that is a justifiable response or not).

Personally, it doesn't bother me whether Matthews takes those media statements seriously. I don't think he really does.

I would agree, that his remarks are mostly flippant - similar to Daniher of Melbourne fame. (In fact, I see both the Lions and Melbourne as being two VERY similar clubs at the moment, in regards to things on-field).

The matter I'm more concerned with, is whether or not this is a sign of overconfidence, or whether his responses are justified by results on the field. I mean, people don't seem to have a problem with what he says, when we win. Certainly, Matthews winning record in his time with the Lions, remains in the positive - so I guess that is one reason for us to be content (at this stage).

I mean, if the Lions were stagnating, or not improving (etc.) when there is no justifiable reason as to why, then I would start to ask more questions than I currently do, of the coaching staff. Last season, however, I was prepared to take into account some of the circumstances which hindered these objectives.

This season will be different. If Matthews doesn't have the side performing at top 4 level (without any 'mitigating circumstances), then I would question whether or not he is capable of leading the Lions to ultimate success, in the long term.

But once again, this is a revision I would make at the end of the season. So, apart from a dramatic form slump or losing streak, I am prepared to be patient, until season's end to make a judgement (taking all factors into consideration, of course!).

From where I'm coming from, I just don't like to hear any coach slagged off, whatever the problem is. I think these things are best sorted out at a season's end - whether or not a coach is suitable for a particular team.

Obviously I want the best for the Lions - I'm no different to any other supporter, I also put my money, and also a lot more, on the line for the Lions. So, it's not like as if I'm not as disappointed as anyone else when we lose.

However, I'm all for supporting the players, and the coach, throught he duration of the season. At season's end, if things need to be reviewed, then so be it.
 
Originally posted by Olmy:
Wasn't Mark Bayes recruited last season to join the coaching panel?

I reckon he used to be a pretty decent kick, so maybe he is the man to do the job.

On another point, it's good to see C.Lambert as an assistant. I reckon it's good for the club.

Perhaps they should also look to remove the bad blood with Merrett, by offering him some sort of assistant's role (perhaps skills - he was an ok kick after all).

R.Osborne is another who could possibly teach them a thing or two about kicking - who also has a link to the club's history.
Click to expand...

What about Plugger?




------------------
Go Hoppers!!
 
Originally posted by SpecialBruce:
I was stumped why Michael was playing Full Forward.
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Why not? A good move was my initial reaction, especially with Carey out. It was either going to be Leppitsch, Lynch or Michael at full forward. Michael played in the forward line reasonably effectively at Collingwood, so why wouldn't you consider him an occasional option at full forward. Lynch had the height and the pace to run with McKernan and was an excellent match-up by Matthews jkeeping him quiet initially. It left Leppitsch in the backline against the Roos only forward Rocca. Later Michael and Leppitsch swapped, another move by Matthews that paid off, Leppitsch kicking three goals and Michael limiting Rocca to a further one. Basically Matthews had all the answers against Pagan's move. And yes I do realise that North were quite undermanned, which helps.

My 3, 2, 1 would be
3 Chris Scott (20 kicks, 7 marks, 5 tackles)
2 Michael Voss (16 kicks, 11 handpasses 5 marks)
1 Marcus Ashcroft (14 kicks, 9 handpasses)

Honorable mentions to Black (only one half), Brown and Keating.
 

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Originally posted by Roylion:
Why not? A good move was my initial reaction, especially with Carey out. It was either going to be Leppitsch, Lynch or Michael at full forward. Michael played in the forward line reasonably effectively at Collingwood, so why wouldn't you consider him an occasional option at full forward. Lynch had the height and the pace to run with McKernan and was an excellent match-up by Matthews jkeeping him quiet initially. It left Leppitsch in the backline against the Roos only forward Rocca. Later Michael and Leppitsch swapped, another move by Matthews that paid off, Leppitsch kicking three goals and Michael limiting Rocca to a further one. Basically Matthews had all the answers against Pagan's move. And yes I do realise that North were quite undermanned, which helps.

My 3, 2, 1 would be
3 Chris Scott (20 kicks, 7 marks, 5 tackles)
2 Michael Voss (16 kicks, 11 handpasses 5 marks)
1 Marcus Ashcroft (14 kicks, 9 handpasses)

Honorable mentions to Black (only one half), Brown and Keating.
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True, what I meant was I was stumped before the match started why he was starting there. I was quite surprised.


------------------
Go Hoppers!!
 
Originally posted by templar:
So you are saying the Coaching staff knows more than us , the dedicated supporters - I DONT THINK SO!
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What makes you think anyone knows anymore than anyone else anyway?? It all comes down to perception.

I doubt any of us could hardly know the inside information on how players are going in regards to form, injuries, capabilities, etc. etc.

I mean, take last year's off-field dramas for example. As supporters, we were kept in the dark. Personally, I think that was a good thing, for the purpose of protecting the club's name, as well as that of the players. Some may disagree, and fair enough.

However, we can only go on what we see during the games. The coaching staff have a better idea than all of us, they're with the players all the time, that's why they are employed to do their job, instead of us.

We are there to support. Thus, the definition of "supporters".
 

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Just wondering if certain people still think Matthews should be sacked?

from zero to hero in 6 months it seems!!
 

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