Was Matthew Knights a scapegoat?

[rainman06]

Knights was pathetic. The only people who think otherwise are nearly exclusively Richmond fans. So yeah, the deluded.

Hiring him was a massive mistake, I guess he was never able to wash off the Richmond stink. And again, unlike Richmond, we are not prone to follow one mistake with another and another - ending up with 15 coaches in the last 30 years or whatever Richmond's hapless record is.

Essendon will look back on this year as a disappointment but there are positives to take and a big glaring excuse with the injuries. A recession from 8th to 10th is not panic stations. Again, unless panic and failure is ingrained in your culture - like one club I know.

 

[Boxhead_31]

But back to the knight question. He had a fundamentally flawed gameplan, which didn't help. Scapegoat? maybe...but at least hird has brought some semblance of a defensive midset to the club, which Knights didn't even bother with.

Is that a result of the assistant coaches?
Who were the assistants Knights had and who are the assistants Hird has?

Knights seems to be doing okay with our VFL side atm moment has got them up into 2nd position after finishing 9th last year

 

[Dwight Schrute]

Is that a result of the assistant coaches?
Who were the assistants Knights had and who are the assistants Hird has?

Knights seems to be doing okay with our VFL side atm moment has got them up into 2nd position after finishing 9th last year

That level of football obviously suits him then.

 

[ZAAHAARAKIS!!!!!]

The problems is obvious, the problem is their midfield! The midfield is the most important part of the ground and they have one of the worst in the league. To be honest I am surprised Thompson did not address this with more urgency given the success he had with Geelon in that part of the ground, unfortunately for them Daniher leaves their hands tied this year so they won't be able to address it until 2013 now. Stanton's early season form and Watson's undoubted brilliance covered it for a while but they are at least 2 classy midfielders short of winning a final or two let alone winning the Premiership they seem to think is pre-ordained for King James.

Ding ding ding ding ding. We have a winner!!

Except for the part about fitness, but that's another story.
We'll see what happens next year when guys like melksham and Heppell have a bit more experience under their belts, and guys like prismall and winderlich (massive improvements on the monfries and the lonergans) return to stiffen up the midfield, but we're definitely lacking in that area of the ground. Very excited for 2013

 

[The Prosecutor]

With Essendon's membership having shrunk by almost 10% this year vs the blind hope of 2011, it will be interesting to see what percentage of the 2012 membership sticks fat next year

Maybe the thousands of 2011 members that jumped off saw this year coming?

Even so, very poor effort

Or maybe Essendon getting rid of general admission seats and forcing people to have a reserved could've had something to do with it.

 

[Doss]

With Essendon's membership having shrunk by almost 10% this year vs the blind hope of 2011, it will be interesting to see what percentage of the 2012 membership sticks fat next year

Maybe the thousands of 2011 members that jumped off saw this year coming?

Even so, very poor effort

By "almost 10%" you actually mean around 6%- good one UTG.

As Prosecutor said, the single biggest factor in the drop in membership this year was the opposition by some to the compulsory reserved seating they brought in at Etihad.

 

[UpTheGuts]

Now it seems even Rohan Connolly and Robinson have decided to call it as it is. A couple of years after Pat Smith did the same.

"Nothing happens here without his say so" is the comment from inside Essendon about Thompson

Hird - world's best paid puppet? Good work if you can get it.

 

[Mr Magic]

Was Essendon a scapegoat???

I mean coaching the bombers is like coaching Richmond 8 years ago, on a hiding to nothing claytons role with no expectations. The truth is Knights could bne the best coach of all but we will never know

 

[mufassa]

When you have the lost the confidence of the playing group like Knights did what other outcome is there?

So if Hird has lost the confidence of the playing group what outcome should there be?

They gave up on the weekend and that performance was that was as bad as anything under Knights.

 

[theflea]

Knights was pathetic. The only people who think otherwise are nearly exclusively Richmond fans. So yeah, the deluded.

Hiring him was a massive mistake, I guess he was never able to wash off the Richmond stink. And again, unlike Richmond, we are not prone to follow one mistake with another and another - ending up with 15 coaches in the last 30 years or whatever Richmond's hapless record is.

Essendon will look back on this year as a disappointment but there are positives to take and a big glaring excuse with the injuries. A recession from 8th to 10th is not panic stations. Again, unless panic and failure is ingrained in your culture - like one club I know.

and wonder why tigers fans troll ess fans.

 

[EasternTiger]

Agree with forum poster mufassa. Hird has clearly lost the playing group. It will be interesting to see how they go this week. Which Essendon will turn up: The insipid give-ups of the last month, or the flat track bullies we saw in the opening 10 rnds?

 

[mufassa]

Agree with forum poster mufassa. Hird has clearly lost the playing group. It will be interesting to see how they go this week. Which Essendon will turn up: The insipid give-ups of the last month, or the flat track bullies we saw in the opening 10 rnds?

Well good news for all Essendon fans is that Michael Hurley still believes they can play finals.

He is also very excited that that Santa will be on his way in 4 months time and already started writing out a Christmas wish list.

 

[UpTheGuts]

It would almost be a greater indictment on the club/ coaches/ players if they played really well this Friday.

 

[Dazb86]

I believe Essendon got it wrong in the off season. Blind Freddy could have told you they needed to work on their fitness last year as they ran out of legs mid season. So what did they do? Bulked the players....

Bad decision.

 

[Doss]

Agree with forum poster mufassa. Hird has clearly lost the playing group. It will be interesting to see how they go this week. Which Essendon will turn up: The insipid give-ups of the last month, or the flat track bullies we saw in the opening 10 rnds?

Clearly lost the playing group? Let me guess, you're chummy with Essendon players and know they're pissed off with Hird?

Stop making up rubbish.

 

[Doss]

It would almost be a greater indictment on the club/ coaches/ players if they played really well this Friday.

Now you're just being confusing.

So even in the unlikely event we win against Richmond, it somehow still becomes a negative?

Okey mete.

 

[amer]

Was going to start a thread to this effect a few weeks back.

Hird, with a better group, has done nothing markedly different from what we saw under Knights. People forget Essendon had injury crises under Knights as well. Long way to go for Hirdy.

 

[mufassa]

Clearly lost the playing group? Let me guess, you're chummy with Essendon players and know they're pissed off with Hird?

Stop making up rubbish.

So Essendon supporters can state that Knights lost the playing group but we can't say the same about Hird losing the players??

Essendon logic at its best......

 

[teknodeejay]

The laugh is that he's getting paid how many million to stare out of a coaches' box window with no idea whatsoever.

I wish I had that job.

 

[teknodeejay]

So Essendon supporters can state that Knights lost the playing group but we can't say the same about Hird losing the players??

Essendon logic at its best......

Essendon logic has always been that all things that occur at Essendon are permissible, legal, above board and part of the future success of the club, and that if the same things occur at another club they are to be highlighted and denounced and made examples of.

 

[ZAAHAARAKIS!!!!!]

Essendon logic has always been that all things that occur at Essendon are permissible, legal, above board and part of the future success of the club, and that if the same things occur at another club they are to be highlighted and denounced and made examples of.

and what part isn't 'permissable or above board' i'm confused

 

[mufassa]

Essendon logic has always been that all things that occur at Essendon are permissible, legal, above board and part of the future success of the club, and that if the same things occur at another club they are to be highlighted and denounced and made examples of.

The display on the weekend was the worst perfomance in 5 years.

 

[Doss]

So Essendon supporters can state that Knights lost the playing group but we can't say the same about Hird losing the players??

Essendon logic at its best......

The fact is, we're all self-appointed experts on here but in reality, very few of us actually, really know the dynamics of the goings on at football clubs. We can only go off the rumblings and rumours we hear- some of which are generated on websites like this, don't forget.

There were rumblings Knights had lost the players; who knows to what degree that is true, I've never worried too much whether he did or not, personally.

It seems some here, though, are effectively saying that 1+1= 3. That is, Essendon are losing, therefore Hird must have lost the players. You can't just go making those assumptions.

But this is bigfooty, so people will always make those assumptions. And do stupid, brainless things like tar an entire supporter base with the one brush.

 

[Cudi_420]

*Essendon fans say Knights was pathetic
*Essendon performs just as if not worse under Hird than Knights

Seriously, Hird is such a pretty boy love child of Essendon, it's pathetic. The guy has no idea. He's no better than Knights was.

Seeing Bombers fan stick up for Hird is laughable. Even Pies fans had the guts to call out how pathetically awful Shaw was.

 

[Lord Nicholson]

It would almost be a greater indictment on the club/ coaches/ players if they played really well this Friday.

Winning games when they're dead rubber and getting the supporters all good and ready for next year? Agreed, it's an RFC smell.

They can pull out the performance against Adelaide one week and then serve up the crap they did on Saturday... it doesn't take an out-and-out genius to see that, like in most cases, a lot of the problem is above the shoulders. Which is probably the untold way that injuries impact a season - accountability goes out the window because the excuse is convenient and there aren't the INs to spare.