Well - let this (please) be the last post about the Reds this season. After all, it is all about the final 4 from here on in, and I've tried to restrain myself on several occasions from explaining the situation at the club upon arrival in January this year.
Suffice to say, the two regular posters here who we all presume are Reds' supporters (Red Roy and overtheline) never represented the true views and expectations of the club (committee and coaching staff) in 2007. In fact, it was probably the complete opposite. I repeat, I don't know who these guys are, if they are truly Reds' supporters, or something else. All I can say is their apparent enthusiasm and blind faith in the Reds was not based on any remote understanding of the parlous state the club was in at the end of 2006, which only got worse by the start of 2007 in an on-field sense. To talk of divine rights for flags every second year and so on is just plainly silly, and it leads me to think perhaps they had little or no genuine connection with the club at all.
When I arrived, it was clear that about 10 to 12 of the key Reds' senior players were, for several reasons, not going to suit up in 2007. It seems Monash, NOBS, Friars and Parkdale suffered similarly during the off-season. (Frankly, I reckon Dale Bower did a great job with keeping the Vultures afloat, and shouldn't be judged on the club dropping from 3rd to 7th this year
).
We were all very concerned that we didn't have any goal-kicking forwards and would struggle to post competitive scores against the middling sides - let alone the OC's and Rupo. Our key position stocks were shot, and the recruits who came to the club were very much smaller running types (self included). The aim was to get as much run into the legs of our midfielders in pre-season, and hope we could run/carry and play a possession style of game, try to sneak 5 or 6 wins and stay up.
Personally, I lost 6 weeks myself due to a nasty bike accident where I broke my jaw in 3 places, and wasn't able to run (and definitely wasn't going to cycle!!!) for most of March and April. Whilst many boys did close to a full pre-season, several of the 2nd tier senior guys, for their own reasons, didn't front until late in the piece. I'm not really used to this but just presumed it was the way a C grade club operated.
Clearly I was wrong.
No doubt the sides who now continue into September worked their bums off in pre-season and, to their credit, are the four who rightfully get to play off for the flag and B grade in 2008.
On the upside, the club's financial position has been resuscitated and is now listed as serious but stable, instead of on life support. Further, on the playing side, our U19s won their 2nd semi and will now get a chance to make up for last years' GF loss and get promoted to Div 3 (which is crucial for a club's development in the VAFA). Obviously, I take some pride in the reserves' side finishing with an 11-7 record, after dropping 3 early games by small margins, and playing with great spirit. It has been a really good start to coaching, blessed with a cracking bunch of lads to play with, and I've learnt a lot in the last 5 months.
Yes there are many good people at the Reds, and Mappa and GWH are two of them. However in my experience there are good people at all VAFA clubs in all divisions - many of whom are posters on BF and will have enjoyed our season thus far. We all aim to win flags and generate success, but sometimes clubs lose their way and it takes more than one season of consolidation to properly re-group, and then get back on track. In the Reds' case, I feel they grew too fast for their own good and, unlike Rupertswood, haven't yet hit upon the proper recipe for sustained success. Hopefully this years' experience will provide a sober lesson and we can structure the club in the right way in the future.
No-one starts a season out trying to get relegated, but occasionally circumstances conspire, both before and during a season, to make that a more likely result than not. As Mappa has said, you simply take the medicine and try to bounce back as quickly as possible. I wish all you guys and girls at the final four clubs the best of luck, and to the NOBs crew, well at least the RedNOB Cup will continue in 2008. To the others who remain in C section - enjoy the month or two off, and make sure you (as I will) get your players back together as early as possible before the summer grass dies and we all get told to keep off the ovals again!!!
Cheers
Fraser
Suffice to say, the two regular posters here who we all presume are Reds' supporters (Red Roy and overtheline) never represented the true views and expectations of the club (committee and coaching staff) in 2007. In fact, it was probably the complete opposite. I repeat, I don't know who these guys are, if they are truly Reds' supporters, or something else. All I can say is their apparent enthusiasm and blind faith in the Reds was not based on any remote understanding of the parlous state the club was in at the end of 2006, which only got worse by the start of 2007 in an on-field sense. To talk of divine rights for flags every second year and so on is just plainly silly, and it leads me to think perhaps they had little or no genuine connection with the club at all.
When I arrived, it was clear that about 10 to 12 of the key Reds' senior players were, for several reasons, not going to suit up in 2007. It seems Monash, NOBS, Friars and Parkdale suffered similarly during the off-season. (Frankly, I reckon Dale Bower did a great job with keeping the Vultures afloat, and shouldn't be judged on the club dropping from 3rd to 7th this year
). We were all very concerned that we didn't have any goal-kicking forwards and would struggle to post competitive scores against the middling sides - let alone the OC's and Rupo. Our key position stocks were shot, and the recruits who came to the club were very much smaller running types (self included). The aim was to get as much run into the legs of our midfielders in pre-season, and hope we could run/carry and play a possession style of game, try to sneak 5 or 6 wins and stay up.
Personally, I lost 6 weeks myself due to a nasty bike accident where I broke my jaw in 3 places, and wasn't able to run (and definitely wasn't going to cycle!!!) for most of March and April. Whilst many boys did close to a full pre-season, several of the 2nd tier senior guys, for their own reasons, didn't front until late in the piece. I'm not really used to this but just presumed it was the way a C grade club operated.
Clearly I was wrong.
No doubt the sides who now continue into September worked their bums off in pre-season and, to their credit, are the four who rightfully get to play off for the flag and B grade in 2008.
On the upside, the club's financial position has been resuscitated and is now listed as serious but stable, instead of on life support. Further, on the playing side, our U19s won their 2nd semi and will now get a chance to make up for last years' GF loss and get promoted to Div 3 (which is crucial for a club's development in the VAFA). Obviously, I take some pride in the reserves' side finishing with an 11-7 record, after dropping 3 early games by small margins, and playing with great spirit. It has been a really good start to coaching, blessed with a cracking bunch of lads to play with, and I've learnt a lot in the last 5 months.
Yes there are many good people at the Reds, and Mappa and GWH are two of them. However in my experience there are good people at all VAFA clubs in all divisions - many of whom are posters on BF and will have enjoyed our season thus far. We all aim to win flags and generate success, but sometimes clubs lose their way and it takes more than one season of consolidation to properly re-group, and then get back on track. In the Reds' case, I feel they grew too fast for their own good and, unlike Rupertswood, haven't yet hit upon the proper recipe for sustained success. Hopefully this years' experience will provide a sober lesson and we can structure the club in the right way in the future.
No-one starts a season out trying to get relegated, but occasionally circumstances conspire, both before and during a season, to make that a more likely result than not. As Mappa has said, you simply take the medicine and try to bounce back as quickly as possible. I wish all you guys and girls at the final four clubs the best of luck, and to the NOBs crew, well at least the RedNOB Cup will continue in 2008. To the others who remain in C section - enjoy the month or two off, and make sure you (as I will) get your players back together as early as possible before the summer grass dies and we all get told to keep off the ovals again!!!
Cheers
Fraser
