Media alert

[SizeMatters]

I wasn't aware that you like the old Bears nostalgia.

I think I might have mentioned it a few times before. Welcome back BTW.

 

[Hollow Knight]

It's okay cause Barrett got on his knees and told him how much of a great job he's done with north. Think Barrett has a crush on him

Barrett is a North supporter.

 

[Simbatheking21]

Barrett is a North supporter.

I am aware of this.... He certainly isn't an Essendon or Brisbane supporter haha

 

[Monkey Daniel]

It's okay cause Barrett got on his knees

With or without the vaseline

 

[Simbatheking21]

With or without the vaseline

Can't confirm anything but my sources say with Vaseline

 

[Mr Ripper]

Yeah I don't support Manchester city but I would love if their owners took us over and brought us unreal fascilities and wiped out debt... A man can dream haha

We have members on our own board with enough do re mi to buy the Gabba.

 

[snooplions]

I find Kevin Bartlett's SEN rants infuriating. Constantly justifies his own opinions by saying "I believe other clubs fans think..." before saying what he thinks. Actually had Jon Ralph taken back by how quick he was to dismiss any afl help to come our way. Kept bringing up the ole "They've won three premierships, the bulldogs, richmond, saints etc haven't won one for *insert amount of years*" I think he whole heartedly believes that if we are helped at all we will suddenly return to our premiership days.. when in reality it will just allow us to stabilize and become more competitive than the rabble we are today.

 

[Cousin Jed]

Cuts deep. No one I trust and respect more in footy than Luke Darcy. I assume re picks and money he was voicing an opinion rather than passing on some insider info?

Sarcasm I assume

 

[AFLQLD]

I think it is worth accepting that people are going to talk smack about this club until things change for us on the field. And that is up to us.

On the whole, the commentators and other fans scarcely give us a thought at the best of times. These aren't the best of times so instead of being irrelevant, we are temporarily a "talking point". It will last a few weeks and then we will settle back into irrelevance again.

The truth is...we don't matter much...to fans, to the Victorian dominated AFL media, to the talking heads of the game. Like it or not, that will remain the reality until we are moving back up and they are forced, by our on-field performances over a string of games, over a season, over a few seasons, to take notice.

The only way to get through this low point is to believe that things do turn. Right now, it seems it will be this way forever, but we will rise. It won't change this week, or next, or the one after that. All we can hope for is increments of improvement; a four quarter effort here, a breakout game there, a surprise win, a narrow gritty loss. We have to string the improvements together and it will be slow at first and there will be setbacks and despair along the way.

However...

If we believe that we can simply improve through effort and commitment and each player doing everything a little better each game...we will find ourselves in a better place in a month...in three months...in round 1 next year...in round 23 next year...in 2018....bit by bit if we can find and build on each increment of improvement.

So let them say what they like. Many of us were following the Bears or Roys or Lions in the dark years before the threepeat. They told us we were worse than awful then. We have seen bad times recently and they are not over yet. Not yet.

But they will be. We will improve. We will rise. We will force them, all of the hacks and experts and keyboard warriors, to acknowledge that the Lions are back.

So, right now they can say what they like. Just know that the day will come again when we will be the headline act.

And on that day, we can all look back on this day and quietly smile knowing we went through the worst and emerged strong again.

 

[dlanod]

Sarcasm I assume

Nah, as part of Elixuh becoming a mod he went through the ritual lobotomy.

 

[Skoob]

Sarcasm I assume

Yeah, but I really like the way he goes about it.

 

[mikey127]

Adam White did an interesting comparrision between Leppa and allan Richardson on RSN. Said they have both coached the same amount of games fro the same amount of wins. He wasn't saying the heat should be on Richardson more saying that Leppa is copping it and Richardson is not so is it justified?

 

[BL_dobsmob]

Adam White did an interesting comparrision between Leppa and allan Richardson on RSN. Said they have both coached the same amount of games fro the same amount of wins. He wasn't saying the heat should be on Richardson more saying that Leppa is copping it and Richardson is not so is it justified?

All I can say is FINALLY.

I think its obvious that the VFL meeja have collectively had one too many head high bumps and the concussions haven't worn off yet.

... And they were beaten by a bigger margin last week

... And they have a far better injury list

... And

/ Rant

Oh wasn't this the vent thread, sorry mods ☺

 

[mikey127]

All I can say is FINALLY.

I think its obvious that the VFL meeja have collectively had one too many head high bumps and the concussions haven't worn off yet.

... And they were beaten by a bigger margin last week

... And they have a far better injury list

... And

/ Rant

Oh wasn't this the vent thread, sorry mods ☺

The only thing I would say is the Saints probably are a bit more competitive then us but then again they are sort of 1 year ahead of us as well but when Riewoldt retires we might go past them.

 

[mikey127]

The only other thing I would say is that I am enjoying being paid double time at work on a Saturday morning to sit on Bigfooty.

 

[Old Den]

The only thing I want to say is our current win/loss ratio for the season and the comments regarding this are pretty much what I expected before the season started and before the problems affecting Clarke,Rockliff and Beams and now Andrews unfolded.

I can wear the disappointment and can see what needs to be done recruitment wise (I hope it turns out to be wise recruitment) and list management in general and let the cards fall where they may with Leppa...our problems are here to stay for a while but some unexpected improvement would be nice.

 

[WhiteLionFeva]

The only other thing I would say is that I am enjoying being paid double time at work on a Saturday morning to sit on Bigfooty.

There's no better feeling than spending someone else's money.

 

[LIONS08]

Pretty decent piece by Browny here.
I was unaware of a bit of information in it. Give it a read over!!

MY old mate Justin Leppitsch is on the chopping block.



After 40 losses from 52 games, it’s not unreasonable to suggest his coaching days could be numbered.

But “Leppa” is one of the fiercest competitors I’ve encountered and I’m backing him to lead a Brisbane Lions resurgence.

Right now, I’m more critical of the senior players, some list management decisions of the past and a lack of development support in recent years than the coach.

Leppa’s hands have also been tied by a reserves team getting thrashed in the NEAFL week after week.

The problem is effort as much as anything. They made some progress in the opening few weeks but the last three quarters against Port Adelaide and for the entire game against Collingwood, the workrate was pathetic.

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That’s a worry and can be a reflection on whether the coach’s message is getting through and how motivated the players are to embrace it.

If you keep dishing up performances like last Saturday night, of course, he’ll be in danger. Leppa would freely admit that, especially in a football market as fragile as Queensland.

Brisbane coach Justin Leppitsch is no guarantee to hold onto his job. Picture: Getty Images
But there’s more substance and coaching smarts to the three-time All-Australian defender than many people think.

He wouldn’t have been all fire and brimstone this week.

He would have kept it pretty level, getting around individually to each of his players.

He can be pretty jovial and lighthearted, which was great in the locker room as a player. He’ll be doing that and offering some of the old Leigh-isms: “It’s never as good as it feels and never as bad as it seems.”

Most of it will be pretty positive. I don’t think he’ll be coming out with the sledgehammer.

I challenge Tom Bell not to hand the ball straight back to the opposition.

After the Port game he publicly put it on the midfield group — and rightly so — but after the Collingwood loss he put it all on himself to deflect some heat from the players.

That told me he was trying to unload the pressure and focus on the positives, but Leppa is a realist and he knows the buck stops with the coach.

Effort is easy to identify and we’ll know from five minutes into Sunday’s game if it’s there, but it must continue for four quarters, despite the score.

Defensively, it’s simple things like manning the mark enthusiastically. It’s the easiest thing you can do, but a great indicator of how switched on a team is.

It’s midfielders exiting stoppages with urgency, sprinting away, not dawdling, and charging back to assist an inexperienced backline.

Offensively, it’s players streaming to create options. It’s spreading, running and getting over to help a mate.

Tom Bell must step up in the absence of Dayne Beams and Tom Rockliff. Picture: Getty Images
No Dayne Beams and no Tom Rockliff certainly hurts, but I expect Daniel Rich to fight through the tag of Jack Viney.

I expect Pearce Hanley to retaliate when Bernie Vince rips into him.

I want to see Stefan Martin challenging Max Gawn to run to all parts of the MCG.

I challenge Tom Bell to make an impact and use his brute force, and not hand the ball straight back to the opposition.

I want Allen Christensen to run as hard when he’s chasing as he does when he gets a free ball over the top.

And I want Ryan Bastinac to show that he’s more than just a depth player and to use his endurance and skills to hurt the opposition.

I know Leppa can coach and has the game plan to succeed.

There’s a view in some quarters that Leppa was gifted the job because of his close association with Leigh Matthews.

Truth is, he was only offered an interview out of courtesy and absolutely floored the selection panel with the breadth of his presentation.

He earned the Brisbane job at the end of 2013 on his own merits, getting the nod over Adam Simpson.

Craig Kelly manages a lot of high-profile coaches and has seen a lot of practice-run presentations and declared it one of the best he’s ever seen.

Trust me, Leigh Matthews isn’t a man who plays favourites.

The week before Leppa retired in 2006, Leigh dropped him to the reserves. His last game of football was in the Brisbane seconds, so Leigh has never let his emotions get in the way of his decisions.

Ryan Bastinac in action for the Lions. Picture: Getty
Leppa served seven seasons as an assistant coach and narrowly missed out on the Richmond job at the end of 2008.

The Tigers were so impressed by his presentation that they offered him the position behind Damien Hardwick, which he accepted.

He’d been at Brisbane as an assistant under Michael Voss but he knew he had to get out and develop his coaching philosophy in Melbourne.

He was heavily influenced by Hardwick, who comes from the Alastair Clarkson coaching family tree.

The other thing that had a bearing on his appointment at the Lions is that he knows the Brisbane landscape and understood the challenges of getting younger players to embrace both the club and the city.

Leppa was that same 17-year-old draftee that wanted to go home but instead worked hard, stayed on and became a premiership legend.

There’s no doubt he was challenged on his management style last year.

He’s had to curb his aggression and the return of his great mate Craig Lambert in a senior strategy and retention role has been a major win.

Having played under him, I know Leppa can coach and has the game plan to succeed.

My money is on the Lions turning it around, starting in the first quarter against Melbourne at the MCG on Sunday.

 

[a mayes ing]

The problem is, do we have the gameplan to succeed? Who knows what our gameplan is. Looks to be running through the middle or going slow down the wings.

 

[Milux]

The problem is, do we have the gameplan to succeed? Who knows what our gameplan is. Looks to be running through the middle or going slow down the wings.

When we are running the ball we look great.

That pies game where we used the wing so much was hard to stomach.

Seriously need to let the players run. Zorko Christensen taylor can run. Hanley and rich can carry and hit targets.

Our players are so out of form its not funny.

 

[mikey127]

Maybe we should give Tayla harris a game

 

[Ceebee]

The only thing I want to say is our current win/loss ratio for the season and the comments regarding this are pretty much what I expected before the season started and before the problems affecting Clarke,Rockliff and Beams and now Andrews unfolded.

I can wear the disappointment and can see what needs to be done recruitment wise (I hope it turns out to be wise recruitment) and list management in general and let the cards fall where they may with Leppa...our problems are here to stay for a while but some unexpected improvement would be nice.

How is the elbow going ?

 

[Milux]

Maybe we should give Tayla harris a game

Hahaha. Funny you mentioned that. Thought ran through my mind 5 mins ago.

 

[a mayes ing]

When we are running the ball we look great.

That pies game where we used the wing so much was hard to stomach.

Seriously need to let the players run. Zorko Christensen taylor can run. Hanley and rich can carry and hit targets.

Our players are so out of form its not funny.

It jjust seems that the only way our players look like succeeding is going through the middle, much like Port Adelaide did. However, it only takes teams to put an extra man or 2 in the middle to stop us. We need to find a plan B and l guess that is what going down the wings is but god lit looks terrible as our players cannot implement it.

 

[Royboys44]

I think it is worth accepting that people are going to talk smack about this club until things change for us on the field. And that is up to us.

On the whole, the commentators and other fans scarcely give us a thought at the best of times. These aren't the best of times so instead of being irrelevant, we are temporarily a "talking point". It will last a few weeks and then we will settle back into irrelevance again.

The truth is...we don't matter much...to fans, to the Victorian dominated AFL media, to the talking heads of the game. Like it or not, that will remain the reality until we are moving back up and they are forced, by our on-field performances over a string of games, over a season, over a few seasons, to take notice.

The only way to get through this low point is to believe that things do turn. Right now, it seems it will be this way forever, but we will rise. It won't change this week, or next, or the one after that. All we can hope for is increments of improvement; a four quarter effort here, a breakout game there, a surprise win, a narrow gritty loss. We have to string the improvements together and it will be slow at first and there will be setbacks and despair along the way.

However...

If we believe that we can simply improve through effort and commitment and each player doing everything a little better each game...we will find ourselves in a better place in a month...in three months...in round 1 next year...in round 23 next year...in 2018....bit by bit if we can find and build on each increment of improvement.

So let them say what they like. Many of us were following the Bears or Roys or Lions in the dark years before the threepeat. They told us we were worse than awful then. We have seen bad times recently and they are not over yet. Not yet.

But they will be. We will improve. We will rise. We will force them, all of the hacks and experts and keyboard warriors, to acknowledge that the Lions are back.

So, right now they can say what they like. Just know that the day will come again when we will be the headline act.

And on that day, we can all look back on this day and quietly smile knowing we went through the worst and emerged strong again.

You my friend should be the Lions spin doctor! You do make sense and present the steady head that was required by myself and many others last weekend when seething at the lack of effort. It is always darkest before the dawn.