Coach Men's Senior Coach: Brad Scott

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I'm a convert. I thought Rutten copped a raw deal as we had a young team that was going up and down and he'd got them to the finals unexpectedly in 2021. I also find Brad Scott's corporate talk that doesn't actually say much with a lot of words.

However, what I see is someone who is setting the team up with multiple game plans and has managed to get enough confidence from the players that they're able to execute the plans. I also think that this is going to set up a positive feedback loop.

I'll still be surprised if we win a final this year, but I'm also aware that we could be a 4 goal better side in 6 weeks' time with Wright, Parish, Setterfield and Shiel back in the side and am prepared to be surprised. However, if we get a solid 18 months and 2 preseasons into Cox, Reid, Tsatas and Davey our team should be in good shape come 2025. If we're not going to be a challenger in 2025 and we don't see list changes between now and then I'll be disappointed.
 
Brads presser post eagles game highlights that he’s got his finger right on the pulse at the club. He’s all too aware of our shortcomings as an organisation and is willing to face them head on. Praise be to Allah the Barham/Sheedy/Hird agreement was short circuited and we can finally move ahead…….we’ve got our man and we’re heading in the right direction
 
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Just found out something. Has the 4th most games coached without a draw behind Blight (250), Hinkley (234) and Whitten (228).
 
This time last year, Essendon were a club in crisis. The Bombers’ season was already shot. A football department review had been launched. Their coach’s future was in doubt.
Twelve months on, there is an air of calmness at the Hangar. The cameras that seemed to be parked daily out the front of Bombers headquarters are now elsewhere. They’re in the eight. The hope that all clubs have over summer still burns brightly the first week of winter.
Brad Scott has brought great change at Essendon.

Brad Scott has brought great change at Essendon.CREDIT:AFL PHOTOS
“I guess winning is kind of everything isn’t it?” Kyle Langford remarked this week.
Brad Scott may be too modest to take credit for the Bombers’ rapid transformation from basket case to finals contender, but it is irrefutable the impact he has had on one of the league’s sleeping giants.

There is no obvious single move Scott has made to reverse red and black fortunes but several small ones which, added up, explain why the Dons are viewed much differently in 2023. The shifts are so basic one may wonder why modern clubs do not err more on the side of simplicity.
“I think Brad’s put in a bit more of a football focus and individual focus on strengths,” Langford said.

Focus on football​

In broader football circles, that phrase is better associated with the rebel group who attempted an audacious challenge to the Richmond board in 2016. Under Scott, it entails a heavier investment into the football program.
The expansion of development coaching roles from 2.5 to 5.5 meant players now have more people to talk to on their games. Former Collingwood premiership forward Travis Cloke, club great Michael Hurley and former North tagger Ben Jacobs, who played under Scott, have beefed up this department.

Loading
“It’s very clear who we can go to whether it be marking craft, ground balls, forward/back craft or whatever it might be,” Langford said.
“There’s very clear lines within the coaching department and a massive focus on just craft. Today we had a low-level kind of day but a big focus on technical aspects of games.”
There is now an extra training session in the week.
“The simple approach is we want players to be able to turn up every day at NEC Hangar knowing they’ve got the resources and facilities to give them the chance to improve every day,” football boss Josh Mahoney said.

“If they’ve got that approach and attitude to get better they’ll be the best players they can be. Our calendar is now very football specific. There’s a real focus on individual development of players, and we’re maximising the period of time we have with our players at the club.”
Track watchers would have noticed more match simulation over summer. By the time the “bring your mouthguards” approach was adopted mid-season last year the Dons’ campaign was already done.
“Scotty was coming into a new team, I guess he knew some players, but he didn’t know the full strength of the squad,” Langford said. “And I think early days he just wanted to play football. Just get us out there as quick as we possibly could, play 16 on 16, 18 on 18. I do remember that being a big focus.
“The kind of running you get 18 v 18 during pre-season is way better than doing 200s. Once you actually get into games, there’s definitely a shift between running fitness to your actual match fitness - it probably takes two or three games to be honest to be able to really fit within a game and I guess we just started a process a bit earlier.”
Players and football staff are also keen to acknowledge former coach Ben Rutten’s contribution to the club despite his acrimonious departure. While there is a new frontman, many of the current coaching panel were at the club last year.

Langford repeatedly uses the phrase “respect the past”, a recognition that the increased focus on football would not be possible without the foundations in other areas laid under former coaches John Worsfold and Rutten.
“Previous years, we focused a little bit more on culture, and I’m like, you have to respect the past,” Langford said. “I think what Truck’s done in the past and Woosha have definitely helped build a belief and a culture in the club. And I think Brad’s been able to come in and just really firm it up.”
Ben Rutten.

Ben Rutten. CREDIT:GETTY IMAGES

Playing to your strengths​

No player embodies this mantra better than Langford, who at age 26 is having a career-best season. Langford’s strengths are his marking and ability to read the ball in the air.

Though capable of playing back, forward and in the midfield, he advised Scott during the pre-season he wanted to settle into a specialist position.
He burst to prominence with a five-goal haul in round two against Gold Coast, and, leading the club with 20 goals, has been one of the Dons’ most consistent players, playing mainly forward with spells up the ground.
Kyle Langford.

Kyle Langford. CREDIT:GETTY IMAGES
Scott recently told Langford he wants him to stay in attack, but not before the player had accepted his versatility was a strength.
“He would acknowledge himself in his earlier years changing positions he would not handle it too well - and was wanting to be really clear what his role was week in week out,” Mahoney said.

“He’s played forward for us the majority of time, and played back at times and wing. He now understands his flexibility is his strength and he can bring his overall strengths as a player to his role week in, week out.”
Langford is not the only player whose strengths are being maximised. Before his injury, Will Setterfield was relishing more time as a big-bodied inside midfielder, having been tried as a wingman at Carlton. Andrew McGrath is flourishing as a backman after a switch last year.
Three-club journeyman Andrew Phillips, perennially on the fringe over 12 seasons for 71 games, is playing his best football as a ruck/forward in the absence of Peter Wright.

Defence​

The most noticeable on-field change is the greater emphasis on defence. While the Bombers could generate free-flowing passages, so too could their opponents. That they could not stop their zone from being sliced through was a key reason why they won just seven games last year.

Loading
Skipper Zach Merrett said earlier this year 90 per cent of their work concentrated on defence, developing what Langford describes as a more “definable” playing style.
Mahoney said: “He talks about everyone’s involved in defence. It’s something everyone can do. It doesn’t matter who your opponent is and how you’re playing individually, you can play a role in defence.”
It has helped shield a back six that has at stages missed Jordan Ridley, Zach Reid, Jayden Laverde and James Stewart to injury.
They have climbed from 16th to 11th for points conceded, but Langford knows it remains a work in progress.

Gravitas​

As a 10-year coach at North Melbourne, Scott commanded immediate respect from players, Mahoney said.
Langford has noted Scott, 47 and 10 years older than Rutten, had fostered a more “clear and defined” coach and player relationship.
“I guess one of the things that’s probably been a little bit different personally from previous coaches is the coach is not there to almost be a mate,” Langford said.
“I’m your coach and I help you get better at football. And I think that’s the relationship that he has with players.

Loading
“It’s not like it’s putting players on edge at all, but it’s a distance, and it’s a healthy distance because then you can have those hard conversations, really challenge different players, leaders, younger players, whatever it might be, but I think that’s been a little bit of a different approach.”
He has also brought calmness, which helped soothe concerns amid a four-game losing streak.
“Brad was able to break it down for the players to show we are making good impressions but others we need to improve in,” Mahoney said.
“And we played against some really good opponents. That balance of wanting to win every game and being able to identify we have some work to do in different areas.”

The future​

For the first time in many years, the future looks bright at Tullamarine. Langford, who has committed until the end of 2026, is now enjoying the stability the club has craved for so long.
“We’ve had a fair bit of stuff go on over the last few years, and he’s really keen to be the senior coach for a long period of time,” Langford said. “To have a lot of stability, us players can grow with him instead of a new system every two, three years.
“That’s what I’m really excited about because I can definitely see Scotty being here long-term. I’ve signed for another three years after this year, would love to play a bit more. I feel like it’s going to be consistent, and we’re not going to have any of those off-field issues anymore. And that’s what I’m excited about. Give us a clear run.”
 
Bowakawa said:
This time last year, Essendon were a club in crisis. The Bombers’ season was already shot. A football department review had been launched. Their coach’s future was in doubt.
Twelve months on, there is an air of calmness at the Hangar. The cameras that seemed to be parked daily out the front of Bombers headquarters are now elsewhere. They’re in the eight. The hope that all clubs have over summer still burns brightly the first week of winter.
Brad Scott has brought great change at Essendon.

Brad Scott has brought great change at Essendon.CREDIT:AFL PHOTOS
“I guess winning is kind of everything isn’t it?” Kyle Langford remarked this week.
Brad Scott may be too modest to take credit for the Bombers’ rapid transformation from basket case to finals contender, but it is irrefutable the impact he has had on one of the league’s sleeping giants.

There is no obvious single move Scott has made to reverse red and black fortunes but several small ones which, added up, explain why the Dons are viewed much differently in 2023. The shifts are so basic one may wonder why modern clubs do not err more on the side of simplicity.
“I think Brad’s put in a bit more of a football focus and individual focus on strengths,” Langford said.

Focus on football​

In broader football circles, that phrase is better associated with the rebel group who attempted an audacious challenge to the Richmond board in 2016. Under Scott, it entails a heavier investment into the football program.
The expansion of development coaching roles from 2.5 to 5.5 meant players now have more people to talk to on their games. Former Collingwood premiership forward Travis Cloke, club great Michael Hurley and former North tagger Ben Jacobs, who played under Scott, have beefed up this department.

Loading
“It’s very clear who we can go to whether it be marking craft, ground balls, forward/back craft or whatever it might be,” Langford said.
“There’s very clear lines within the coaching department and a massive focus on just craft. Today we had a low-level kind of day but a big focus on technical aspects of games.”
There is now an extra training session in the week.
“The simple approach is we want players to be able to turn up every day at NEC Hangar knowing they’ve got the resources and facilities to give them the chance to improve every day,” football boss Josh Mahoney said.

“If they’ve got that approach and attitude to get better they’ll be the best players they can be. Our calendar is now very football specific. There’s a real focus on individual development of players, and we’re maximising the period of time we have with our players at the club.”
Track watchers would have noticed more match simulation over summer. By the time the “bring your mouthguards” approach was adopted mid-season last year the Dons’ campaign was already done.
“Scotty was coming into a new team, I guess he knew some players, but he didn’t know the full strength of the squad,” Langford said. “And I think early days he just wanted to play football. Just get us out there as quick as we possibly could, play 16 on 16, 18 on 18. I do remember that being a big focus.
“The kind of running you get 18 v 18 during pre-season is way better than doing 200s. Once you actually get into games, there’s definitely a shift between running fitness to your actual match fitness - it probably takes two or three games to be honest to be able to really fit within a game and I guess we just started a process a bit earlier.”
Players and football staff are also keen to acknowledge former coach Ben Rutten’s contribution to the club despite his acrimonious departure. While there is a new frontman, many of the current coaching panel were at the club last year.

Langford repeatedly uses the phrase “respect the past”, a recognition that the increased focus on football would not be possible without the foundations in other areas laid under former coaches John Worsfold and Rutten.
“Previous years, we focused a little bit more on culture, and I’m like, you have to respect the past,” Langford said. “I think what Truck’s done in the past and Woosha have definitely helped build a belief and a culture in the club. And I think Brad’s been able to come in and just really firm it up.”
Ben Rutten.

Ben Rutten. CREDIT:GETTY IMAGES

Playing to your strengths​

No player embodies this mantra better than Langford, who at age 26 is having a career-best season. Langford’s strengths are his marking and ability to read the ball in the air.

Though capable of playing back, forward and in the midfield, he advised Scott during the pre-season he wanted to settle into a specialist position.
He burst to prominence with a five-goal haul in round two against Gold Coast, and, leading the club with 20 goals, has been one of the Dons’ most consistent players, playing mainly forward with spells up the ground.
Kyle Langford.

Kyle Langford. CREDIT:GETTY IMAGES
Scott recently told Langford he wants him to stay in attack, but not before the player had accepted his versatility was a strength.
“He would acknowledge himself in his earlier years changing positions he would not handle it too well - and was wanting to be really clear what his role was week in week out,” Mahoney said.

“He’s played forward for us the majority of time, and played back at times and wing. He now understands his flexibility is his strength and he can bring his overall strengths as a player to his role week in, week out.”
Langford is not the only player whose strengths are being maximised. Before his injury, Will Setterfield was relishing more time as a big-bodied inside midfielder, having been tried as a wingman at Carlton. Andrew McGrath is flourishing as a backman after a switch last year.
Three-club journeyman Andrew Phillips, perennially on the fringe over 12 seasons for 71 games, is playing his best football as a ruck/forward in the absence of Peter Wright.

Defence​

The most noticeable on-field change is the greater emphasis on defence. While the Bombers could generate free-flowing passages, so too could their opponents. That they could not stop their zone from being sliced through was a key reason why they won just seven games last year.

Loading
Skipper Zach Merrett said earlier this year 90 per cent of their work concentrated on defence, developing what Langford describes as a more “definable” playing style.
Mahoney said: “He talks about everyone’s involved in defence. It’s something everyone can do. It doesn’t matter who your opponent is and how you’re playing individually, you can play a role in defence.”
It has helped shield a back six that has at stages missed Jordan Ridley, Zach Reid, Jayden Laverde and James Stewart to injury.
They have climbed from 16th to 11th for points conceded, but Langford knows it remains a work in progress.

Gravitas​

As a 10-year coach at North Melbourne, Scott commanded immediate respect from players, Mahoney said.
Langford has noted Scott, 47 and 10 years older than Rutten, had fostered a more “clear and defined” coach and player relationship.
“I guess one of the things that’s probably been a little bit different personally from previous coaches is the coach is not there to almost be a mate,” Langford said.
“I’m your coach and I help you get better at football. And I think that’s the relationship that he has with players.

Loading
“It’s not like it’s putting players on edge at all, but it’s a distance, and it’s a healthy distance because then you can have those hard conversations, really challenge different players, leaders, younger players, whatever it might be, but I think that’s been a little bit of a different approach.”
He has also brought calmness, which helped soothe concerns amid a four-game losing streak.
“Brad was able to break it down for the players to show we are making good impressions but others we need to improve in,” Mahoney said.
“And we played against some really good opponents. That balance of wanting to win every game and being able to identify we have some work to do in different areas.”

The future​

For the first time in many years, the future looks bright at Tullamarine. Langford, who has committed until the end of 2026, is now enjoying the stability the club has craved for so long.
“We’ve had a fair bit of stuff go on over the last few years, and he’s really keen to be the senior coach for a long period of time,” Langford said. “To have a lot of stability, us players can grow with him instead of a new system every two, three years.
“That’s what I’m really excited about because I can definitely see Scotty being here long-term. I’ve signed for another three years after this year, would love to play a bit more. I feel like it’s going to be consistent, and we’re not going to have any of those off-field issues anymore. And that’s what I’m excited about. Give us a clear run.”
Click to expand...
Wow I didn’t realise how articulate Langers is. 😄
 

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Someone mentioned it last week but it's tonight

 
Seems all over the map in the press conference. First question, he praised us, he praised North, he made excuses for why we could of lost, he attack us for almost losing. Probably doing it deliberately.
 
No Robbo tonight, Whateley and Jordan Lewis are hosting.
 
Most interesting thing was Zac Merrett wearing a mic for fox footy yesterday, they had some audio of what he was saying during the game (matched with vision).

They talked a bit about Merrett and his leadership, how it makes it easier to coach if your leaders walk the walk, coz the young guys watch them closely.

Also mentioned Stringer’s work off the ball as an example, makes a lot of impact when a guy with Stringer’s reputation in attack is leading the way with all the team defence stuff.

Had the gotcha question about how we’ll go this season now we’re cemented in the top 8 for the time being. Obviously not gonna make wild statements but his version of not answering that question was to state that our benchmark this year is for every player on the list to improve individually, from Merrett all the way down, and the team’s overall achievement will come from that.

Beyond that lots of chatter about Hawthorn, Breust’s goal milestone and Buddy’s game milestone, and a bit about De Goey’s suspension.

Meh.
 
Lore said:
Most interesting thing was Zac Merrett wearing a mic for fox footy yesterday, they had some audio of what he was saying during the game (matched with vision).

They talked a bit about Merrett and his leadership, how it makes it easier to coach if your leaders walk the walk, coz the young guys watch them closely.

Also mentioned Stringer’s work off the ball as an example, makes a lot of impact when a guy with Stringer’s reputation in attack is leading the way with all the team defence stuff.

Had the gotcha question about how we’ll go this season now we’re cemented in the top 8 for the time being. Obviously not gonna make wild statements but his version of not answering that question was to state that our benchmark this year is for every player on the list to improve individually, from Merrett all the way down, and the team’s overall achievement will come from that.

Beyond that lots of chatter about Hawthorn, Breust’s goal milestone and Buddy’s game milestone, and a bit about De Goey’s suspension.

Meh.
Click to expand...
Fox arent really that interested in us
Stands to reason, we've done nothing of note on field in 24 years, and we seem to have put scandal away for a bit

What is there to talk about.
Ground out a couple of wins against bottom 5 sides. Went to perth and did what you do.

Havent even had a rising star nom this year.

I like this boring era. Lets keep it up for a bit

Wonder if robbo boycotted tonight in protest
 
citizen-erased said:
Fox arent really that interested in us
Stands to reason, we've done nothing of note on field in 24 years, and we seem to have put scandal away for a bit

What is there to talk about.
Ground out a couple of wins against bottom 5 sides. Went to perth and did what you do.

Havent even had a rising star nom this year.

I like this boring era. Lets keep it up for a bit

Wonder if robbo boycotted tonight in protest
Click to expand...

I'm not surprised the media aren't that interested in us right now. We are performing above expectations (which were very low coming into this year) but still most of us would be surprised if we even finished top 6 from here. So we aren't contenders and we don't have big issues for them to discuss. We are also pretty boring off-field. None of these are particularly negatives but they also aren't going to be selling views either.

If we suddenly went from 7-5 to 10-5 and competing with the big boys then we'd garner some attention. The truth is though we've been competitive with the good sides we've failed every real test except for Melbourne even though honestly Collingwood and Port Adelaide were real opportunities for wins.
Considering where we are in our development phase going under the radar is probably for the best anyway.
 
Call Me Cake said:
Probably the first time in 10 years where you know what you're gonna get going into a match, win or lose.
Click to expand...

Yet we are apparently really easy to score against according to the analysts quoting our team defence etc.

I feel like we have been so much better defensively this year though so it sucks to hear that type of thing.

I think we played better against Collingwood then say Richmond or North, the skills have been really poor last couple of weeks.

The best thing is sitting down and you can see the team play with a plan, whether it's to neutralize an opposition strength, or exploit a perceived weakness. That's the best thing.
 
Got to remember that that stat is based on percentage per transition play, not volume of transition plays. I would speculate the team is absolutely limiting the number of end-to-end transition plays by controlling the ball when they’re in possession and forcing more stoppages in the forward half, I.e. fewer chances for the opposition to take it coast to coast.

Still need to work on the other stuff but there are signs of overall defensive improvement, let alone how we set up behind the ball.
 
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Coach Men's Senior Coach: Brad Scott

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