Something we see regularly is the belief that after the 2010 flag we were on the edge of a dynasty. One of the youngest aged premiership teams etc etc. This is dragged up a lot including by the former coach, however there is often a reinvention of history and memories of players and teams become better with age.
This is no defense of Nathan Buckley, his coaching methods are a separate issue and the subject of a 3000 page thread. However i don't think in any way he inherited a great list and destroyed a dynasty. In the cold light of day its actually a sub standard one in terms of future planning, but one that was well tuned to succeed at the time and that in itself is a credit to MM.
Our premiership 23 is listed to below and were supposedly going to carry us to some sort of long term period of dominance:
The Soldiers:
All these guys were terrific soldiers and every team needs them. They played their role well. However they were not exactly super talented and quite a few fought their way into the team from the rookie list. Most but for Harry & Dawes played on for us and did OK, but they were never going to be the key to multiple flags. Mostly very young and sadly not talented enough that they could carry us to flage. I think a lot perhaps over rated what Caff, Blair, O'Brien and Dawes could do into the future.
Nick Maxwell (26)
Alan Toovey (23)
Jarryd Blair (19)
Brent Macaffer (22)
Tyson Goldsack* (22)
Harry O’Brien (23)
Chris Dawes (21)
The Oldies:
Now these guys were all terrific in the flag and in general. Their age (especially Ball) does not really scream old, however unfortunately in retrospect they had little left in their bodies. Usually in a flag team we would be listing these as 30+ guys. Sadly injuries (past & future) cut them down way to quick. All these guys were keys to the flag side, but after 2011 they slid away very quickly, very hard to replace. Not old on paper but old in body.
Darren Jolly (28)
Luke Ball (25)
Leigh Brown (28)
Leon Davis (28)
Ben Johnson (28)
Alan Didak (27)
The stars below effectively were supposed to carry the club into an unprecedented dynasty of success. The question is in retrospect is should we have been expecting these players to deliver flags?
The Stars Lost:
Dale Thomas (22) - Probably the major bust of all. Looked to be elite and in 2011 was. However, injuries and perhaps simply being over rated caught up with him.
Dayne Beams (20) - Big but unavoidable loss, better than most in retrospect and on talent hurts the most. No one could forsee his unfortunate circumstances.
Heath Shaw (24) - A trade casualty. Another big loss, but on his own wasn't going to deliver us a dynasty and that was clear by the time he was traded.
Sharrod Wellingham (21) - I rated him very high and maybe I have been proven wrong. Part of the reason people were bullish was Sharrod combining with Beams & Sidey in the future.
The Stars Retained:
Nathan Brown (21) - Maybe star is stretching it but certainly held a key post
Ben Reid (20) - Genuine A grader cursed by injury
Dane Swan (26) - Superstar.
Travis Cloke (23) - Solid, but did not get anywhere near expectations of what we thought he could become and didn't really deliver on his massive contract. This hurts as a lot of eggs were in his basket.
Scott Pendlebury (22) - Superstar
Steele Sidebottom (19) - Star
For me only Swan, Pendles & Sidebottom have ended up delivering performances that matched the high expectations that people including me had of them. The idea that this was a list that was on the verge of delivering a dynasty now seems to me a bit absurd and I am puzzled that it keeps getting dredged up.
When you look at the older players that made up the seconds in that year it was a list on the verge of collapse not on the verge of a dynasty. We topped up with Tarrant & Krak the next year and whilst they were very good they simply accelerated the decline when they added themselves to the young in age but old in body list. Bad injuries played their part, but the list itself was not well structured to take us into the future.
This is no defense of Nathan Buckley, his coaching methods are a separate issue and the subject of a 3000 page thread. However i don't think in any way he inherited a great list and destroyed a dynasty. In the cold light of day its actually a sub standard one in terms of future planning, but one that was well tuned to succeed at the time and that in itself is a credit to MM.
Our premiership 23 is listed to below and were supposedly going to carry us to some sort of long term period of dominance:
The Soldiers:
All these guys were terrific soldiers and every team needs them. They played their role well. However they were not exactly super talented and quite a few fought their way into the team from the rookie list. Most but for Harry & Dawes played on for us and did OK, but they were never going to be the key to multiple flags. Mostly very young and sadly not talented enough that they could carry us to flage. I think a lot perhaps over rated what Caff, Blair, O'Brien and Dawes could do into the future.
Nick Maxwell (26)
Alan Toovey (23)
Jarryd Blair (19)
Brent Macaffer (22)
Tyson Goldsack* (22)
Harry O’Brien (23)
Chris Dawes (21)
The Oldies:
Now these guys were all terrific in the flag and in general. Their age (especially Ball) does not really scream old, however unfortunately in retrospect they had little left in their bodies. Usually in a flag team we would be listing these as 30+ guys. Sadly injuries (past & future) cut them down way to quick. All these guys were keys to the flag side, but after 2011 they slid away very quickly, very hard to replace. Not old on paper but old in body.
Darren Jolly (28)
Luke Ball (25)
Leigh Brown (28)
Leon Davis (28)
Ben Johnson (28)
Alan Didak (27)
The stars below effectively were supposed to carry the club into an unprecedented dynasty of success. The question is in retrospect is should we have been expecting these players to deliver flags?
The Stars Lost:
Dale Thomas (22) - Probably the major bust of all. Looked to be elite and in 2011 was. However, injuries and perhaps simply being over rated caught up with him.
Dayne Beams (20) - Big but unavoidable loss, better than most in retrospect and on talent hurts the most. No one could forsee his unfortunate circumstances.
Heath Shaw (24) - A trade casualty. Another big loss, but on his own wasn't going to deliver us a dynasty and that was clear by the time he was traded.
Sharrod Wellingham (21) - I rated him very high and maybe I have been proven wrong. Part of the reason people were bullish was Sharrod combining with Beams & Sidey in the future.
The Stars Retained:
Nathan Brown (21) - Maybe star is stretching it but certainly held a key post
Ben Reid (20) - Genuine A grader cursed by injury
Dane Swan (26) - Superstar.
Travis Cloke (23) - Solid, but did not get anywhere near expectations of what we thought he could become and didn't really deliver on his massive contract. This hurts as a lot of eggs were in his basket.
Scott Pendlebury (22) - Superstar
Steele Sidebottom (19) - Star
For me only Swan, Pendles & Sidebottom have ended up delivering performances that matched the high expectations that people including me had of them. The idea that this was a list that was on the verge of delivering a dynasty now seems to me a bit absurd and I am puzzled that it keeps getting dredged up.
When you look at the older players that made up the seconds in that year it was a list on the verge of collapse not on the verge of a dynasty. We topped up with Tarrant & Krak the next year and whilst they were very good they simply accelerated the decline when they added themselves to the young in age but old in body list. Bad injuries played their part, but the list itself was not well structured to take us into the future.
) and after the Melbourne game things clicked, Geelong fell temporarily to less than they were, and voila we ran away with it. Actually St Kilda almost, phew, pinched it that first week of grand finals.
