News Coaching Thread: The Hardwick Era

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Dew's positioning of the boys have committed to me and to each other is true and is the problem. Dew's whole coaching history has been about keeping a list of first round picks around long enough to make finals and then no more retention issues, unfortunately looking at his record, the question asks itself, why, after 6 years, do I trust you will be able to become a premiership coach, and you can't. But his positioning of this club will crumble if you sack me for someone else has me feeling kinda right about him
We talk about his list retention skills but Rankine who I would rate as arguably our most important player walked
Yes it was probably line ball but if he's on the team we are likely 3 more wins up at this stage
The thing about Izak is he's robust too Can't recall too many lengthy injury issues
 
We talk about his list retention skills but Rankine who I would rate as arguably our most important player walked
Yes it was probably line ball but if he's on the team we are likely 3 more wins up at this stage
The thing about Izak is he's robust too Can't recall too many lengthy injury issues
Dew is 100% gone if we don't make finals.
So l'm told.

On CPH2333 using BigFooty.com mobile app
 

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Which was Dew's own fault, by amazingly thinking playing that many talls together in the forward line would work.
IMO, all our 3 key losses - Essendon, Freo, Demons - had nothing to do with playing too many talls. In all of them we were not able to convert opportunities (our major issue almost every game). Against Freo - missing Witts was also a key. After HT Moyle could not keep up and midfield got spanked. Against Demons beside not able to convert, umpires killed us with some terrible calls in crucial moments.

Yes, too tall against Lions but the whole team was a bit off and midfield got obliterated.

Basically, it comes down to how midfield performs and not being able to take our opportunities.
 
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Finals are gone most probably but unless we fade out, I expect Dew will get next year too. Players support Dew strongly.

Suns vice-captain Sam Collins backs Dew to coach for ‘many years’ amid Hardwick speculation​

Rumours of Damien Hardwick taking over as Gold Coast coach has motivated the club’s players to ‘rally’ around their ‘great coach’ and get a ‘strong win’ this week.
Gold Coast vice-captain Sam Collins has hit back at rumours Damien Hardwick would be a suitor to his club’s top coaching job, saying current holder Stuart Dew “absolutely” has the full support of the playing group.
Collins said speculative talk about coaching replacements is “a part of the AFL” before going on to say Dew is a “great coach” and “has really got the best out of me so I look forward to working with him closely for many years to come”.
The 28-year-old defender was complimentary of the work Dew had already done since taking up the senior coaching position at the Suns in 2018.
“We absolutely value Dewy,” he said.
“He is a great coach, he builds really strong relationships with the players.
“The way he educates, leads and develops our list is up there with the best.
“I think the culture and environment that he and the leadership group and the club have created so the boys can thrive and achieve their best up here is something he should definitely be proud of.”
 
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Finals are gone most probably but unless we fade out, I expect Dew will get next year too. Players support Dew strongly.

Suns vice-captain Sam Collins backs Dew to coach for ‘many years’ amid Hardwick speculation​





Sounds like the support of key players was a factor in the contract extension.
Fair enough, but if the wins don't come this year and they are thinking about a change, doubt it will carry as much weight this time. Also fair enough.

Hoping it gets more interesting and we go out and beat the Dogs and Crows and get to 6-6.
Suspect it will be pretty boring if we lose both and go to 4-8. Same old same old.
 
Glad he’s got the support of the players and seems like a good bloke - pity we’re a football club and not a summer camp.

Don’t mean to sound like a prat but I couldn’t care less whether the players and coach are best buddies - need someone more ruthless who’s here to win a flag not make up the numbers.
 
If Voss happens to become available at some point this year, do we try to bring him in as an assistant coach? I know we were linked to him prior to his appointment at Carlton and back then he was highly rated as an assistant coach at Port Adelaide so perhaps he can have a similar influence on our playing group.

Thoughts?
 
Glad he’s got the support of the players and seems like a good bloke - pity we’re a football club and not a summer camp.

Don’t mean to sound like a prat but I couldn’t care less whether the players and coach are best buddies - need someone more ruthless who’s here to win a flag not make up the numbers.
Exactly. I’m not surprised the players are a fan of him. He doesn’t particularly hold them to account. Either they are one of his favourites and will play no matter what, or they are on the outer and will be banished to the VFL after 1 poor moment. And those on the outer are generally the ones half-assing it in the VFL and asking to be traded.
 

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Exactly. I’m not surprised the players are a fan of him. He doesn’t particularly hold them to account. Either they are one of his favourites and will play no matter what, or they are on the outer and will be banished to the VFL after 1 poor moment. And those on the outer are generally the ones half-assing it in the VFL and asking to be traded.
Exactly I’d rather have a coach like Leigh Matthew’s that they fear a little and RESPECT
 
Exactly I’d rather have a coach like Leigh Matthew’s that they fear a little and RESPECT
Great coaches from the 90's wouldn't resonate with the young players today, players won't react well to being eviscerated weekly if it isn't going their way. You need to find a balance of stick and carrot.
 
Great coaches from the 90's wouldn't resonate with the young players today, players won't react well to being eviscerated weekly if it isn't going their way. You need to find a balance of stick and carrot.
Guess that’s Dewey’s problem - too many carrots 🥕
 
Great coaches from the 90's wouldn't resonate with the young players today, players won't react well to being eviscerated weekly if it isn't going their way. You need to find a balance of stick and carrot.
We tried that Leigh Matthews style hard coaching approach with Rodney Eade and it basically set us back five years. The players hated it and just about all the good ones left under Eade's watch or shortly after. I remember seeing an interview with Dayne Beams shortly after he left Brisbane to rejoin Collingwood and he was asked what the difference was between Bucks in his first stint at the Pies vs his second stint. Essentially he said Buckley had become a lot more caring for his players because he realised the old school hard approach didn't work anymore with kids these days. Bucks was able to get them back to a GF with his new approach.

Two things to take from that - number one you can't just be hard on the players 24/7 anymore and number two you can evolve as a coach as you progress through your career. Dew clearly has the care part down pat and now needs to start evolving into a coach that is a more demanding of maximum performance on a weekly basis. I reckon he can do it and dropping Brandon Ellis this week is probably an example of that but he's got to get a move on because the wolves are out to get him.
 
We tried that Leigh Matthews style hard coaching approach with Rodney Eade and it basically set us back five years. The players hated it and just about all the good ones left under Eade's watch or shortly after. I remember seeing an interview with Dayne Beams shortly after he left Brisbane to rejoin Collingwood and he was asked what the difference was between Bucks in his first stint at the Pies vs his second stint. Essentially he said Buckley had become a lot more caring for his players because he realised the old school hard approach didn't work anymore with kids these days. Bucks was able to get them back to a GF with his new approach.

Two things to take from that - number one you can't just be hard on the players 24/7 anymore and number two you can evolve as a coach as you progress through your career. Dew clearly has the care part down pat and now needs to start evolving into a coach that is a more demanding of maximum performance on a weekly basis. I reckon he can do it and dropping Brandon Ellis this week is probably an example of that but he's got to get a move on because the wolves are out to get him.

But Rodney Eade was a baffling selection, he was cooked at the end of his bulldogs tenure and was famous then for not being able to control his temper. Matthews was a legendary coach and was always relatively measured. I think the best coaches have that bit of fear factor about them and mostly never have to use it. The blokey, mates with the players coach barely ever works. Teague and Rutten the players loved too, as some recent examples.
 
But Rodney Eade was a baffling selection, he was cooked at the end of his bulldogs tenure and was famous then for not being able to control his temper. Matthews was a legendary coach and was always relatively measured. I think the best coaches have that bit of fear factor about them and mostly never have to use it. The blokey, mates with the players coach barely ever works. Teague and Rutten the players loved too, as some recent examples.

Pretty sure Craig McRae has zero fear factor.
Chris Scott has turned into a very low fear factor coach. He has said a few times that does not work with his older playing group anymore.

If you can get the best out of the group in front of you, you can coach whatever the style.

That is the basic query over Dew. Is he really getting the best out of most of the players in the best 30 on the list? Absolutely yes for probably 10 players but also a hard no for others and a soft maybe for a few more. In the end, I think it will be close but not quite enough this year.
 

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News Coaching Thread: The Hardwick Era

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