Coaching Staff Past Coach: Matthew Knights - Finally gets his second shot - 5/5

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Re: Voice Your Disapproval of Knights

Ricky said:
Mate, YOU'RE NOT AN ESSENDON SUPPORTER!!!

f*** off to Richmond, it's embarrassing for us to be called Essendon supporters with w***ers like you...
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Uhmm.

Where do Richmond supporters fit the mould of not turning up when the side is not going well????:confused:

We as supporters would make a mockery of the OPs boycott plan as we keep turning up in droves to the point of insanity.

On the subject of Knights, his wins against St Kilda and the Bulldogs may be the sticking point for those who want to see him gone.
 
The Petition.. we will be heard..

Fellow Donners,

It is from the pits of my bleeding heart that I post this today. In no way shape or form in my entire history viewing the self confessed greatest and most powerful club in the land, have I witnessed such a deplorable display of supposed football I have ever seen in my life. Shattering. Shattering is the only word that describes the lack of effort, heart, or any sense of pride in the Red & Black that, at one stage, was a prerequisite of this proud and mighty club.
Before I go on (oh.. and I will go on..) I would like to make the point that this isnt a simpletons bashing thread. The point of this thread is to raise several key issues which are clearly hampering the Essendon Footbal Club, in a concise and constructed manner. It would be appreciated if those posting on here could keep petty arguments and differences aside and have open and honest discussions in regards to Essendons unfortunately impending demise. This goes for non-Essendon supporters posting on here too: Have your input but make it relevant. By the end of the week I will post the link for a site we are setting up, petitioning for the immediate removal of Matthew Knights from Windy Hill. If and when we feel as though there is enough votes, the petition will be forwarded to my contact at the EFC. The form is as simple as can be and will take less than 5 minutes per person, and has the option (optional) to put your membership number (if you are one) and other relevant information. Why? Because the more members who put pen to paper and say enough is enough, the more likely it is that we will be heard. Even if you are not a member, if you believe in the proceeding points as fact, then please take the time to sign it. There will be sections allowing you to detail the games youve attended this year (if you are not a member), again, to further push the cause.

The problems are obvious:

1) The Coach
2) The GamePlan
3) Drafting
4) The Selections
5) The Midfield


The Coach

Ok, lets get this one out of the way. I have been a king defender of Matthew Knights up until midway through this year when it became alarmingly aparent that the majority of supporters concerns were correct. His record at Bendigo alone should have raised eyebrows. Of course, ex-Chairman Ray Horsburgh was as smug as Simon Crean as he sat there tooting his own horn over the Knights appointment. Not so smug now are we, Ray? Heres a tip: When you hire the coach for an AFL Powerhouse with the richest history of success in the league, youd want to get it right. At the least, youd want to be closer than the length of Flemington straight to success. On what basis was there any evidence at all to suggest that Knights had what it took? Simply, there was none. Furthermore, I contend that a decisive factor in the Knights appointment was that the Essendon Board were covering their own arse and trying to minimize player backlash at the way the end to the Sheedy era unfolded.

Let us make the point that Sheedy had coached Essendon for 27 years with distinction. However, we all knew that it was time for a change, and in no way are we suggesting that Sheddy should still have been at the helm post 07'. His drafting and team structures had become selfish, and it appeared he was drafting for the present (with the dubious drafting of Ty Zantuck, Justin Murphy, Richard Cole..and many more) and not for the future. Having said that, Knight's appointment not only contradicted Essendons culture of success, but the Essendon Football Clubs own admissions that they require a "coach of premiership experience". Backflipped on that very quickly, didnt we Essendon?

If ever there was a day they had to perform, the eve of the 2000 Premiership, and with their backs against the wall, this was it. Judging by Essendons lack of heart on July 11th, 2010, it seems as though the players have lost their faith in Knight's ability aswell.

The Gameplan

Unsustainable and Shabby. It could be summed up with those 3 words alone. I will not attempt to go into the semantics of the gamestyle, as it will lead us afar from the point, but it will be pointed out that more and more professionals are adding weight to the argument that the faster the game, the greater the rate of soft tissue injuries[1]. At Essendon, we know all too well the devastation of such continual injuries. How are these guys supposed to get a core, cohesive and continual group together long enough to develop the rapport required of team mates to perform at the elite level, when every week its a dodgy proposition as to whos going to be sidelined through injury?
This, of course, is coupled with the hampering of our youngsters development through continually missing games.

The problem with the gamestyle is simple: It works only if their is one team on the field. Having players streaming down the centre/wings quick as the flash looks brilliant when we're in posession, and we're executing it skill wise. However, the smallest turnover, and quite simply the players are so far off the mark that they cant get back to their direct opponent in time. Damaging, time and time again.

Drafting

I cannot comprehend why Essendon would draft primarily for a spine (using blue chip picks on players such as Ryder,Gumbleton, Hurley, Myers) and then utilize a game plan that lessens the need for key position posts. If you are going to invest so drastically in Key Position stocks, youd think the idea of a SKILLED midfield who can deliver the ball inside 50 with merit would be an absolute necessity. Not so, according to Matthew Knights. Apparently, it makes complete sense to waste high draft picks on Key Position stocks with loads of potential, only to make them work for their own ball 9 times out of 10.

Sinse Matthew Knights has been in power the following were taken with our first pick: David Myers, Michael Hurley & Jake Melksham. Considering we already had Scott Gumbleton & Paddy Ryder, and we had the view to take Tayte Pears later (which we did) the obvious alternative to David Myers was Cyril Rioli. No bagging on Myers, he has great potential, but do we need him more than we need a Rioli in the midfield? Given what we already had, I dont think so.

The Selections

This is the big one. Come selection time there must be a magical Hawthorn troll infect Windy Hills board room with LSD. Some of the weekly selections are baffling at best. It has come to the point where my usual Thursday raid of Essendons website to check the team sheet now comes with the stock standard cringe as I see the same plodders played week in week out, while youngsters with great potential are on knifes edge for the smallest of errors. The most glaring selection decisions are the aparent automatic inclusion of Henry Slattery, Andrew Welsh, Mark McVeigh. Ill leave Marky mark alone for now, he (unlike the majority of our team) is clean by foot and (unsurprizingly) injury prone. The glaring stats are those for Welsh and Slattery. Statistics from 2010 prove that we are a worse team with them in the side, yet strangely, they are played when fit 100% of the time.

The stats are peanuts. In 2010 alone, our record with Henry Slattery as a starter shows that we won only 2 from 10 games. Thats 20%. Thats terrible. Welsh is in the same boat: Of the 11 games hes started in, we have won only 2. For the pure statistition, thats a mere 18.2%. Now, many factors contribute to a loss i.e. other injuries & strategies etc. However, the games where neither of these 2 played (Rounds 8,9 & 10) Essendon were on song, beating St Kilda, belting Richmond & then overcoming a late Western Bulldogs charge to cement ourselves as a real finals chance. Welsh returned in Round 11, Slattery a week later, and sinse then we have been nothing short of pitiful, losing every game sinse our Round 10 win.

Players such as David Myers (Pick #6 2007), who were taken on potential and have shown enough in their very brief appearances, should seriously be considering a new club by now. Similar to the issue of injuries affecting team rapport: Where is their motivation to bleed the red & black when they know theyll be dropped the second one of the ploddering "favourite sons" is available again? Welsh & Slattery are the most glaring deficiencies, but theyre not alone.

Its an utter embarrassment, and all the Essendon heavyweights who are putting their head as far in the sand as they possibly can, I can think of another place you can put your head if you dont start making yourselves accountable to the problem.

The Midfield

The problem isnt going to fix itself. Of the midfielders we have available, only Jobe Watson & Paddy Ryder could be considered A grade or close to it. Watson landed last year and cemented himself this year. Paddy is on the way, and once he dominates games against quality opposition, we can mark him down too. But they are specialized. Watson is the master inside player, but lacks the quality polish of an outside midfielder. Ryder is will be a quality ruckman with the way he reads the play and his athletiscism. Hes noticeably stronger, too.

Here is a list of players from top to bottom (listed more on time spent than potential) that can play in our midfield:

David Hille
Paddy Ryder
Jobe Watson
Brent Stanton
Andrew Welsh
Brent Prismall
Heath Hocking
Jason Winderlich
Jake Melksham
Travis Colyer
Bachar Houli
Ben Howlett
Kyle Reimers
Sam Lonergan

Take away the two rucks, and captain Jobe, and its not too pretty, is it?

Special provisions can be made for Heath Hocking (improved remarkably over the last 12 months and has a good football brain), Jake Melksham (first season and travelling quite well), Ben Howlett & Bachar Houli, for the sheer fact that they are one of those "axed" once the plodders are available again. Poor Bachar, what excactly does he have to do to get a fair run at this club? Simply, another beautiful kick penetrating kick left in the VFL.

One proposed Midfield solution
Let it be known that we cannot escape recruiting a potentially elite skilled midfielder. Bank on it. It does not matter if they are not the best player available, we take the best MIDFIELDER available regardless of their position in the draft. With a ruck combination of Tom Bellchambers & David Hille (upon return) I would be interested in toying with the idea of utilizing Ryder as a centreman. He may not have the engine for it yet, but he is nimble & athletic, speedy & skilled, can create pressure through tackling and has a damaging boot. Along with Jobe Watson, we can try this whilst continuing the development of players such as Heath Hocking & Jake Melksham, Bachar Houli, Kyle Reimers and ideally a first round midfield pick. With our KPP stocks, and a change of game plan, this would make us competettive again.

Use your weight Essendon. Youre the richest club in the land. If there isnt a good enough midfielder in the draft, throw yourself around come trade time. Dangle the carrot, and the vultures will come. Sit and rest on your misplaced laurels, and we're destined to be the Richmond of the 21st century, we'll just do it with cash in the bank.

The solution
Sack Knights immediately & send his favourite sons with him. Recruit for a midfield, even with the current draft concessions. Make sure the next heir directs a style that lets our young key position prodigies perform. Finally, let us strike this affair from 07-10' from our memories, but let us not forget the lesson: To instruct success, you have to have obtained success, for, how are you able to demand something of your sheep that you are not able to demonstrate yourself? A good team comes from good leadership, and a great team comes from equally great leadership.

GoodKnight.

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[1] http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...d-to-hamstring-injury-rise-20100512-uy1m.html
 
Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

The Gameplan

Unsustainable and Shabby. It could be summed up with those 3 words alone. I will not attempt to go into the semantics of the gamestyle, as it will lead us afar from the point, but it will be pointed out that more and more professionals are adding weight to the argument that the faster the game, the greater the rate of soft tissue injuries[1]. At Essendon, we know all too well the devastation of such continual injuries. How are these guys supposed to get a core, cohesive and continual group together long enough to develop the rapport required of team mates to perform at the elite level, when every week its a dodgy proposition as to whos going to be sidelined through injury?


I'd like to know what our game plan is....??


GoodKnight.

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[1] http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...d-to-hamstring-injury-rise-20100512-uy1m.html[/QUOTE]
 

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Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

Bomberman86 said:
The stats are peanuts. In 2010 alone, our record with Henry Slattery as a starter shows that we won only 2 from 10 games. Thats 20%. Thats terrible. Welsh is in the same boat: Of the 11 games hes started in, we have won only 2. For the pure statistition, thats a mere 18.2%. Now, many factors contribute to a loss i.e. other injuries & strategies etc. However, the games where neither of these 2 played (Rounds 8,9 & 10) Essendon were on song, beating St Kilda, belting Richmond & then overcoming a late Western Bulldogs charge to cement ourselves as a real finals chance. Welsh returned in Round 11, Slattery a week later, and sinse then we have been nothing short of pitiful, losing every game sinse our Round 10 win.
Click to expand...

Totally their fault we lost :rolleyes:...nothing to do with the lack of effort and defensive pressure in the forward line and mid-field..

De-list them straight away and all our problems will be solved
 
Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

Fairly long post and I can't be bothered reading it but I'm pretty sure you've missed the "lets recruit a lazy arse forward in Williams" with pick 16 for Lovett. Replace our midfield catalyst of last year with a guy who used to pull out the shotgun after a goal. :eek:

You could have mentioned our midfield saviour in Skipworth. You know the guy that was meant to teach the kids and was so much better than that evil dude Ben Cousins.

I reckon Rob Stich and the working dog boys could do a series on our club the last few years. Plenty of material to work with. A laugh a minute.
 
Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

For **** sake, like Centurion said "This is getting out of hand."
 

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Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

Bomberman86 said:
The Selections
This is the big one. Come selection time there must be a magical Hawthorn troll infect Windy Hills board room with LSD. Some of the weekly selections are baffling at best. It has come to the point where my usual Thursday raid of Essendons website to check the team sheet now comes with the stock standard cringe as I see the same plodders played week in week out, while youngsters with great potential are on knifes edge for the smallest of errors. The most glaring selection decisions are the aparent automatic inclusion of Henry Slattery, Andrew Welsh, Mark McVeigh. Ill leave Marky mark alone for now, he (unlike the majority of our team) is clean by foot and (unsurprizingly) injury prone. The glaring stats are those for Welsh and Slattery. Statistics from 2010 prove that we are a worse team with them in the side, yet strangely, they are played when fit 100% of the time.
Click to expand...

You're going to pot the 3 guys who consistently show the heart that you are crying out for? Do you even watch the games?

Bomberman86 said:
The solution
Sack Knights immediately & send his favorite sons with him. Recruit for a midfield, even with the current draft concessions. Make sure the next heir directs a style that lets our young key position prodigies perform. Finally, let us strike this affair from 07-10' from our memories, but let us not forget the lesson: To instruct success, you have to have obtained success, for, how are you able to demand something of your sheep that you are not able to demonstrate yourself? A good team comes from good leadership, and a great team comes from equally great leadership.
Click to expand...

This is a simpletons OP, crying because we're not winning, and looking for the quick fix solution. It shows no unity for our club. We are rebuilding, we will lose some games and we will be inconsistent. If you can't deal with this at the very least don't be a pathetic whinger. Geelong and St Kilda both developed their lists through darker days remember.

I wouldn't trust the OP to sit the right way on a toilet seat, let alone what he professes to know about our drafting strategy... Cyril over Myers is great hindsight... any recruiter of that time would have gone the way we did.

Maybe Knights won't make it, he's a young coach and is still learning. He is certainly being tested ATM. At least show some support for the club rather than go off and rant like a crying school girl.
 
Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

When has an online petition ever failed to work?

In fact, I'm starting a Sakc Knight's and get James Heard! Facebook group.

Don't worry guys, we'll be fine.

Oh, and kudos to Fairybread for that post.:thumbsu:
 
Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

Slappery said:
Totally their fault we lost :rolleyes:...nothing to do with the lack of effort and defensive pressure in the forward line and mid-field..

De-list them straight away and all our problems will be solved
Click to expand...

Sinse youre a Johnny come late heres a tip. Rubbish my thread when you at least can provide a solution to what im saying, cus even if people dont agree with my thread, there aint too many Bomber folk out their who wouldnt crank a bottle of wine at the thought of them getting the axe :)
 
Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

WeAreEssendon said:
Fairly long post and I can't be bothered reading it but I'm pretty sure you've missed the "lets recruit a lazy arse forward in Williams" with pick 16 for Lovett. Replace our midfield catalyst of last year with a guy who used to pull out the shotgun after a goal. :eek:

You could have mentioned our midfield saviour in Skipworth. You know the guy that was meant to teach the kids and was so much better than that evil dude Ben Cousins.

I reckon Rob Stich and the working dog boys could do a series on our club the last few years. Plenty of material to work with. A laugh a minute.
Click to expand...

There are hundreds of things I could have stated. We all get the idea.
 
Re: The Petition.. we will be heard..

Duckworth said:
You're going to pot the 3 guys who consistently show the heart that you are crying out for? Do you even watch the games?



This is a simpletons OP, crying because we're not winning, and looking for the quick fix solution. It shows no unity for our club. We are rebuilding, we will lose some games and we will be inconsistent. If you can't deal with this at the very least don't be a pathetic whinger. Geelong and St Kilda both developed their lists through darker days remember.

I wouldn't trust the OP to sit the right way on a toilet seat, let alone what he professes to know about our drafting strategy... Cyril over Myers is great hindsight... any recruiter of that time would have gone the way we did.

Maybe Knights won't make it, he's a young coach and is still learning. He is certainly being tested ATM. At least show some support for the club rather than go off and rant like a crying school girl.
Click to expand...

No, im crying because were putting everything in place to be the least competetive we possibly can.
 

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Coaching Staff Past Coach: Matthew Knights - Finally gets his second shot - 5/5

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