Opinion Matthew Nicks: Adelaide's Coach (Part 2) - Full Support of the Board

[Jeffcrowe]

No real strong opinion either way on the upcoming signing, but this feels a weirdly timed melt.

Firstly, as a club we've had our fair share of short term coaches to compare tenure length to.

Secondly we're (maybe) on the other side of a rebuild. Coaches don't often survive rebuilds.

Time will tell.

Alot of our coaching changes have been player driven over the years

Ayres , Sanderson and even Pyke to some degree

I feel it’s taken a while but Nicks has this current group onside and invested

But I still would prefer we wait until at least mid year to see a further progression , at least to keep everyone on edge rather than comfortable

 

[George Kramer]

Huh !

The whole footy industry is lauding the Crows list and where we are heading as a Club .....not one media person or analyst is disputing this

So where has the Free Pass been ....and what scrutiny is required

You do realise, we've gone thru a full rebuild .....list and administration ....navigated CoVid, and still will make Finals

No other Club has consistently rebuilt as the Crows have .....ESS, GC, CARL, NORTH, MELB, RICH and so on took years and years ....and most still couldn't do it, even with AFL handouts

But yes, Nicks is **** and there's been way too many free passes LOL

Is Nicks the list manager?

 

[relapse]

Huh !

The whole footy industry is lauding the Crows list and where we are heading as a Club .....not one media person or analyst is disputing this

So where has the Free Pass been ....and what scrutiny is required

You do realise, we've gone thru a full rebuild .....list and administration ....navigated CoVid, and still will make Finals

No other Club has consistently rebuilt as the Crows have .....ESS, GC, CARL, NORTH, MELB, RICH and so on took years and years ....and most still couldn't do it, even with AFL handouts

But yes, Nicks is **** and there's been way too many free passes LO

Your post highlights exactly the free pass mentality that I have been referring to on here.

The continual list of excuses rolled out, he's had to contend with COVID, having a poor list, rebuilding etc and the goal posts continually being moved as to when finals are the expectation. A couple of years ago 2023 was the expectation for making the finals then last year it changed to 2024, so is 2024 the year where not making the finals will be considered a failure or will it suddenly become 2025?

I have made this point before that Hardwick took Richmond from bottom half way through his first season to finals within 4 seasons and then to a premiership within 8 years. Clarkson took the Hawks from bottom to finals in 3 seasons and to a flag in his fourth year. Good coaches have shown that they are able to rebuild and achieve success within a short space of time, at this stage Nicks has not yet achieved anything and rather than celebrating hypothetical achievements (like you are celebrating about making the finals before it's even happened) I think the club needs to exercise caution and wait until there is actually an achievement before rewarding him with another contract.

All I will say is that there's be no coach in VFL/AFL history that has missed the finals in their first four seasons that has gone on to be successful, so history is definitely against Matthew Nicks.

 

[relapse]

Is Nicks te list manager?

It must be the case in Wayne's World, it's the same universe where he has also already made the finals too

 

[George Kramer]

It must be the case in Wayne's World, it's the same universe where he has also already made the finals too

It’s a funny defence of Nicks, “the industry loves our list!!!”.

Hmm shouldn’t that be a list management compliment?

It’s another Waynism.

 

[Samcro24]

Your post highlights exactly the free pass mentality that I have been referring to on here.

Exactly.

Free pass is over now. At least it should be.

Imagine extending him, then missing the 8 on the back of some dopey sub calls, and selection howlers like last year. Just wait and see ffs.

 

[WaynesWorld19]

I have made this point before that Hardwick took Richmond from bottom half way through his first season to finals within 4 seasons and then to a premiership within 8 years. Clarkson took the Hawks from bottom to finals in 3 seasons andto a flag in his fourth year. Good coaches have shown that they are able to rebuild and achieve success within a short space of time, at this stage Nicks has not yet achieved anything and rather than celebrating hypothetical achievements (like you are celebrating about makings the finals before it's even happened) I think the club needs to exercise caution and wait until there is actually an achievement before rewarding him with another contract.

Do you think any Crows Coach would survive these ladder positions ......and would you characterise this performance as that of a good coach ? .....yo-yoing ladder positions season after season

Both Clubs had supporters baying for blood .....and we know Crows supporters would not have tolerated these performances ......they want linear development





In both cases, the two teams were not in a full rebuild .....GEEL, the beneficiaries of some of the best father / son gifts of all time ......RICH perennially out of the 8, and the beneficiary of of so many low draft picks

IF your model of success is premised on just making the 8 ....then we'll disagree

But in the case of the two Clubs above ....they saw the attributes of a good Coach ....and that assessment is always well in advance of supporters realisation, they have a good coach

I've stated, Nicks Finals performances are still to be tested .....but there is, nor was there ever a chance, he wasn't getting another 2 years with his list

 

[WaynesWorld19]

It must be the case in Wayne's World, it's the same universe where he has also already made the finals too

Didn't we technically make the finals last year ??

 

[FR0GGY]

Didn't we technically make the finals last year ??

No

 

[relapse]

Exactly.

Free pass is over now. At least it should be.

Imagine extending him, then missing the 8 on the back of some dopey sub calls, and selection howlers like last year. Just wait and see ffs.

Agreed, if we extend Nicks before a ball is bounced and then go on and miss the finals then it's a huge fail for our admin.

I have no problem if the club extends him after achieving something, but as you have said the club needs to wait and see before pulling the trigger.

 

[Scorpus]

They don't even have to wait that long. It'll be obvious after 5 or 6 rounds whether we have improved

 

[Danger in Texas]

They don't even have to wait that long. It'll be obvious after 5 or 6 rounds whether we have improved

Bingo, there’s a small chance that that a mid-season collapse happens but more often it doesn’t

Id be happy to sign him up after round 6 or so if we’re generally around the mark as a top team

 

[relapse]

They don't even have to wait that long. It'll be obvious after 5 or 6 rounds whether we have improved

I tend to agree, in the first six weeks we have

GC (A)
Geelong (H)
Fremantle (A)
Melbourne (H)
Carlton (A)
Essendon (H)

I think it's a good block of games to assess whether we've improved or not.

I don't think it's unrealistic to class a record of 4-2 at the end of Round 6 as an indicator that we've improved from 2023.

 

[GreyCrow]

I'd be concerned if I was Nicks.

With Sloane out for a period of time he will be missing a top notch midfielder

Do not sign early

 

[Big Dub]

I tend to agree, in the first six weeks we have

GC (A)
Geelong (H)
Fremantle (A)
Melbourne (H)
Carlton (A)
Essendon (H)

I think it's a good block of games to assess whether we've improved or not.

I don't think it's unrealistic to class a record of 4-2 at the end of Round 6 as an indicator that we've improved from 2023.

Last year we only beat the Hawks and Eagles away and lost to Richmond, GWS, Collingwood and Sydney at home.

So what's a pass for the first 6 games to show we have improved? 3 wins?

 

[John Who]

I think the issue is how you view an “elite coach”. Do you consider a great coach defined by how many premierships and Finals appearances? Or one that helps to improve his cattle, setting them up for a likelihood of being a premiership contender?

To me, I liken a coach to a job like a high school teacher. A great teacher helps you want to learn to improve, and your marks will naturally improve. A teacher’s job though isn’t necessarily guaranteeing his entire class to all get full marks or University scholarships.

FWIW, I think Nicks is doing a great job with the current squad. I’m indifferent either way of when we sign a new contract, just mainly want to see further improvements.

 

[Jarman3]

Didn't we technically make the finals last year ??

Fair point.

I'm fine with it if we technically re-sign Nicks before the season starts, but wait until midway before making a real decision either way.

 

[relapse]

Last year we only beat the Hawks and Eagles away and lost to Richmond, GWS, Collingwood and Sydney at home.

So what's a pass for the first 6 games to show we have improved? 3 wins?

Last year we were 4 and 2 after 6 games.

Realistically we should be aiming at 5-1 as all of those games are winnable except for the Carlton game.

I think if we can go through those 6 and at least be sitting at 4-2 then that's a pass, 5-1 would be a definite improvement.

 

[George Kramer]

Last year we were 4 and 2 after 6 games.

Realistically we should be aiming at 5-1 as all of those games are winnable except for the Carlton game.

I think if we can go through those 6 and at least be sitting at 4-2 then that's a pass, 5-1 would be a definite improvement.

And the 2 we lost were with Dawson playing in defence and going in short in defence against Richmond. Wayne trying to claim we made the finals, well we fix those coaching stuff ups and we win at least one of those games and make the finals irrespective of a wrong umpire call.

 

[relapse]

And the 2 we lost were with Dawson playing in defence and going in short in defence against Richmond. Wayne trying to claim we made the finals, well we fix those coaching stuff ups and we win at least one of those games and make the finals irrespective of a wrong umpire call.

Last year the GWS, GC and Essendon away games all have should have been wins, but we weren't good enough to get the job done.

For us to take the next step will involve being able to close out those types of games and win them.

If that happens then making the finals takes care of itself.

 

[cleanhands]

And the 2 we lost were with Dawson playing in defence and going in short in defence against Richmond. Wayne trying to claim we made the finals, well we fix those coaching stuff ups and we win at least one of those games and make the finals irrespective of a wrong umpire call.

Don’t rely on what’s not in your control!

 

[Scorpus]

I tend to agree, in the first six weeks we have

GC (A)
Geelong (H)
Fremantle (A)
Melbourne (H)
Carlton (A)
Essendon (H)

I think it's a good block of games to assess whether we've improved or not.

I don't think it's unrealistic to class a record of 4-2 at the end of Round 6 as an indicator that we've improved from 2023.

I think it's more than just wins though. We will know from how we are playing, the gameplan, selection, team composition whether we have improved. We will also know from how we respond to a loss.

We made some pretty significant blunders early in the season that quickly showed we weren't ready for finals. Nicks can't be making basic errors early like not playing our best player in the midfield.

The way he uses our midfielders in particular, how he rotates younger players into the mix, and his use of players like Sloane, Smith and Murphy will tell us a lot about whether he should be retained or not

 

[FR0GGY]

Before yesterday it would have been easy.
Sloane in rd 1, pack his bags
Sloane out rd 1, consider signing him later in the year.

 

[Redline]

They don't even have to wait that long. It'll be obvious after 5 or 6 rounds whether we have improved

I tend to agree, things change over the course of a season but I think we will know after a month.

I think that is what the club is scared off. It doesn't take much to be 1-5 or even 2-4 at which point finals are starting to look a stretch. They then sense they will be backed into a corner.

 

[jimvic]

I tend to agree, things change over the course of a season but I think we will know after a month.

I think that is what the club is scared off. It doesn't take much to be 1-5 or even 2-4 at which point finals are starting to look a stretch. They then sense they will be backed into a corner.

you mean they won't leave it until August