- Oct 5, 2008
- 8,871
- 20,759
- AFL Club
- Hawthorn
Perhaps this is a little simplistic, and if you think I am wrong then by all means offer up your opinion, but it seems to me we are a team without a burning hunger to win.
I look at Collingwood and I see the intensity with which they play. They’re all hyper alert and all dialled in to the same goal. Winning. You can sense an electricity in the group and it really sets the tone for their performances.
I think back also to our golden era and the likes of Hodge, Lewis, Burgoyne, Roughead and Mitchell himself who appeared to be in a constant state of high intensity, strongly setting the tone for the group. Players were all held accountable and whilst behind-the-scenes I’m sure there was some lightheartedness, what we saw on the field was not about fun or enjoyment. It was about collectively working together to win. It was an extremely serious matter and that was understood amongst the entire group.
I feel like that sort of culture is so valuable and really missing from our current list. It’s also something you can’t fake. You need to have it burning inside you. It’s a personality type. It seems therefore to me you need to explicitly recruit guys with that sort of temperament. Hyper competitive guys that hate, detest and will not stand for losing. When they come off the field after a loss, it sits in the stomach all week and motivates them to perform.
For me Luke Hodge embodied that, and I think the proof is in the pudding given that he captained us to a threepeat. As much as I hate acknowledging it, Joel Selwood was the same formula with Geelong. Insert Michael Voss for Brisbane. The only guy on our list that I see with a bit of that burning desire to win is Mitch Lewis. Beyond that I see a team of guys out there, just having fun and having a laugh.
This is what Luke Hodge looked like when he played football. When you turned around that’s what you saw every minute of the game. You knew you were doing something ****ing serious, not having fun with your mates.
I know we are in the era of “cuddle culture” and everything’s about making the players happy but I just don’t think you’re ever going to win flags with a kumbaya mantra. If I was a recruiter I would have leadership and competitiveness right alongside football ability in my selection criteria.
Am I being too simplistic?
I look at Collingwood and I see the intensity with which they play. They’re all hyper alert and all dialled in to the same goal. Winning. You can sense an electricity in the group and it really sets the tone for their performances.
I think back also to our golden era and the likes of Hodge, Lewis, Burgoyne, Roughead and Mitchell himself who appeared to be in a constant state of high intensity, strongly setting the tone for the group. Players were all held accountable and whilst behind-the-scenes I’m sure there was some lightheartedness, what we saw on the field was not about fun or enjoyment. It was about collectively working together to win. It was an extremely serious matter and that was understood amongst the entire group.
I feel like that sort of culture is so valuable and really missing from our current list. It’s also something you can’t fake. You need to have it burning inside you. It’s a personality type. It seems therefore to me you need to explicitly recruit guys with that sort of temperament. Hyper competitive guys that hate, detest and will not stand for losing. When they come off the field after a loss, it sits in the stomach all week and motivates them to perform.
For me Luke Hodge embodied that, and I think the proof is in the pudding given that he captained us to a threepeat. As much as I hate acknowledging it, Joel Selwood was the same formula with Geelong. Insert Michael Voss for Brisbane. The only guy on our list that I see with a bit of that burning desire to win is Mitch Lewis. Beyond that I see a team of guys out there, just having fun and having a laugh.
This is what Luke Hodge looked like when he played football. When you turned around that’s what you saw every minute of the game. You knew you were doing something ****ing serious, not having fun with your mates.
I know we are in the era of “cuddle culture” and everything’s about making the players happy but I just don’t think you’re ever going to win flags with a kumbaya mantra. If I was a recruiter I would have leadership and competitiveness right alongside football ability in my selection criteria.
Am I being too simplistic?