Review R22: The Good, Bad and Ugly vs. Footscray

[PeterSalt]

Soligo - impressive

 

[davos44]

Well, waddaya know, I posted it, unfinished (below), lol@me!!


I'm one of the 'Sak Nix Brigadiers', but I did not say the above, nor imply it.

Btw, thanks for the non-abusive reply; respect .

... it's hard to get excited about the players who've not been destroyed by Nicks.
Keays was a ready-made product who turned 23 in 2020; it's taken Nicks 4+ years to figure out how best to use him.
Walker was a star in his own right, 30 in 2020but I'm nit-picking.
How did Dawson begin his stints in the midfield? By suggesting it to the Coach, not vice versa.
Now, THAT is laughable.
Likewise, Soligo who hounded Nicks for an AFL game, then asked to be given a go in the midfield.

Nope, never thought it (because it's a ridiculous is-match in terms of height and weight and experience); never would have suggested it, either.
You'd be better off counter-arguing things that I did say, not stuff you've invented.

Yes, the kid was nervous as hell and shell-shocked, for sure. A decent Coach would have said to him @ halftime "You've been selected because we believe in you. Shake off that half of footy and show us what you've got" ie give him a pep talk and some confidence. Subbing him at half-time is soul-destroying for a rookie --- followed by --- then he was dropped, later made sub and when subbed on he sat on the pine for the first 10 minutes of the last quarter. What is the use/point of that?
Anyway, let's see if Curtin sticks around or seeks a trade back West, fair enough?

Nope. Again, I never thought it, or said it.
You'd be better off counter-arguing things that I did say, not stuff you've invented.

Your point? How does that reflect on Nicks as an awful Coach?
Dawson and Walker have been carrying niggles.
Laird, astonishingly runner up in the 2023 BnF, was an error-ridden, stat-padding, high-bombing liability and carried that into 2024.


Again, your point?
Nicks is being hampered in his brilliance by injuries to players?
Nicks was well-established shit before Murray, Thilthorpe, Worrell and Milera went down.

In order: 1) man-child Jones was drafted at #9 (!!) end 2018, Murphy as a rookie, same year; McAsey #6 (!!!) in 2019.
All chosen independent of Nicks.
Jones took years to come good in 2023 (under Nicks) only to fall away again this year. Hardly a success story.
Murphy IS a success story in his and Nicks' minds. He is one of the worst players to reach 100+ games for the AFC.
He's a tough little nugget, for sure, but another try-hard wannabe with little (occasionally) to no (often) game-day impact.
McAsey was a dud, full stop.
2) Did he have mental health issues? Do you have a link to support that please?
3) Cook, an "abject failure"? As bad as Murphy or McAsey? No. Have a look at his numbers 2021-2024, most relevantly 2024:

AFL Tables - Brayden Cook - Stats - Statistics

He averages about 10 disposals in 15 games/2024 and less than a goal/game. I rate him below Jones; hardly a success story.

What?
Lever left at the end of the 2017 year.
Keep up.

Abusing people over our football club would be borderline unhinged, like the 36ers/St Kilda sacking their coach after signing him to a 2 year deal.

Funnily enough we have only sacked Sanderson this century. The rest stepped down, weren't offered a contract or green lit the worst thing to happen to this club ever and quit after annihilating club morale.

Keays was delisted by Brisbane, he was far from ready made like say Dawson. Adelaide (Nicks??!!) gave him a go and he played midfield for the first couple of seasons, now transitioned into a dangerous hard running pressure forward.

Soligo played on the wing until his body/mind allowed him to be a FT mid (tank, strength, rotation, patterns etc). His preseason was hampered slightly which put him a couple of weeks behind but he has transitioned well this year? Its his 3rd year after being pick 36, that makes me think Nicks is a good coach.

Curtin looked unfit, hapless and confused in that Brisbane game. My thoughts would be that he would have his confidence further destroyed by keeping him out there, instead he went back to the SANFL, developed, got more comfortable and we got that Dan Curtin on Sunday arvo. What a beautiful left foot and hands in close, the Geelong one was hard because even I was thinking "who are we subbing off??" Then the ball got stuck in that broadcast pocket.

McAsey lost his passion for the game and started Mental Health program pertaining to stress responses and trauma healing. Lets call it Mental Fitness for the demands of the AFL environment?

If your best, most experienced players are average/missing/injured/out of form and you are relying on guys with 50 games or less to drive performance it makes it really hard to look good as a coach IMO.

The jury is out on Cook I would say, he isn't a failure.... yet.

Also please don't bring up Jones being pick 9, it doesn't help anyone and gives us all heartburn to think we won the last 4 games of 2018 for no reason while our social inferiors down the road got Rozee and Butters.


Nicks can coach, shouldn't be sacked, the proper rebuild started in 2022 and you're all wrong about him.

 

[George Kramer]

Abusing people over our football club would be borderline unhinged, like the 36ers/St Kilda sacking their coach after signing him to a 2 year deal.

Funnily enough we have only sacked Sanderson this century. The rest stepped down, weren't offered a contract or green lit the worst thing to happen to this club ever and quit after annihilating club morale.

Keays was delisted by Brisbane, he was far from ready made like say Dawson. Adelaide (Nicks??!!) gave him a go and he played midfield for the first couple of seasons, now transitioned into a dangerous hard running pressure forward.

Soligo played on the wing until his body/mind allowed him to be a FT mid (tank, strength, rotation, patterns etc). His preseason was hampered slightly which put him a couple of weeks behind but he has transitioned well this year? Its his 3rd year after being pick 36, that makes me think Nicks is a good coach.

Curtin looked unfit, hapless and confused in that Brisbane game. My thoughts would be that he would have his confidence further destroyed by keeping him out there, instead he went back to the SANFL, developed, got more comfortable and we got that Dan Curtin on Sunday arvo. What a beautiful left foot and hands in close, the Geelong one was hard because even I was thinking "who are we subbing off??" Then the ball got stuck in that broadcast pocket.

McAsey lost his passion for the game and started Mental Health program pertaining to stress responses and trauma healing. Lets call it Mental Fitness for the demands of the AFL environment?

If your best, most experienced players are average/missing/injured/out of form and you are relying on guys with 50 games or less to drive performance it makes it really hard to look good as a coach IMO.

The jury is out on Cook I would say, he isn't a failure.... yet.

Also please don't bring up Jones being pick 9, it doesn't help anyone and gives us all heartburn to think we won the last 4 games of 2018 for no reason while our social inferiors down the road got Rozee and Butters.


Nicks can coach, shouldn't be sacked, the proper rebuild started in 2022 and you're all wrong about him.

You never did answer, would you have re-signed Nicks to 1 year after round 1 and would you do it now?

 

[CrowBloke]

Abusing people over our football club would be borderline unhinged, like the 36ers/St Kilda sacking their coach after signing him to a 2 year deal.

Yeah, but plenty in here resort to personal abuse.
We disagree strongly, but it's civil.

Keays was delisted by Brisbane, he was far from ready made like say Dawson. Adelaide (Nicks??!!) gave him a go and he played midfield for the first couple of seasons, now transitioned into a dangerous hard running pressure forward.

What I meant was we didn't have to deal with Keays' late-teen, early-20's anxiety and inexperience.

Soligo played on the wing until his body/mind allowed him to be a FT mid (tank, strength, rotation, patterns etc). His preseason was hampered slightly which put him a couple of weeks behind but he has transitioned well this year? Its his 3rd year after being pick 36, that makes me think Nicks is a good coach.

All true, except for the "good Coach" bit, but you've ignored that Soligo knocked on Nicks' door every Monday to get a game in the first place and later to get a gig in the midfield.
Similarly, after joining Dawson moved himself into the backline when needed on his own initiative; Nicks admitted as much and said Dawson had licence to do so, but it wasn't on Nicks' instruction.
Then Dawson met with Nicks and asked to be moved into the midfield. That was not Nicks' idea, either.

OK, Nicks agreed to Dawson's suggestions, but a good Coach would have identified Dawson's strengths.
Nicks really has no idea where players fit best. Nicks played McSpudly all over the place until he finally realised he was all huff'n'puff and no BLOOOWWWW-YOUR-HOUSE-DOWN!! which many of us had identified much sooner.

Curtin looked unfit, hapless and confused in that Brisbane game. My thoughts would be that he would have his confidence further destroyed by keeping him out there, instead he went back to the SANFL, developed, got more comfortable and we got that Dan Curtin on Sunday arvo.

That's a fair enough interpretation. I see what you mean.

What a beautiful left foot and hands in close

Yes! When he finds his feet and some confidence, Curtin, Hinge and Dawson will be amazing to watch.

McAsey lost his passion for the game and started Mental Health program pertaining to stress responses and trauma healing. Lets call it Mental Fitness for the demands of the AFL environment?

Did you see the look of utter disappointment on McAsey's face when he was picked?
I don't think he ever wanted to be a Crow and his indifferent SANFL form proved that imo.

If your best, most experienced players are average/missing/injured/out of form and you are relying on guys with 50 games or less to drive performance it makes it really hard to look good as a coach IMO.

The Crows did not, absolutely NOT, only lose games when the seniors were average/missing/injured/out of form.
Players like Soligo, Rachele, Pedlar, Michalanney were certainly driving performance before they'd played 50 games.
You've not conceded a single point about Nicks'
--- odd selections
--- player favoritism eg Murphy's continued selection is indefensible
--- retaining senior players with mediocre or bad form
--- lack of Plan B on Game Day (especially his failures to make moves when oppo teams get a run of goals going)
--- stubbornness and refusal to admit to any mistakes of his own.

The jury is out on Cook I would say, he isn't a failure.... yet.

Not for my money. Disappears in games for too long too often.
The more subtle stats are damning:
0.56 goals/game.
0.15 contested marks/game ie 1 every 6 games!! ONE contested mark, every SIX games , wtf?
0.33 marks I50/game ie 1 every 3 games.
0.74 1%ers/game ie 2 every 3 games, less than one/game.
0.30 goal assists/game ie 1 every 3 games,
all suggest a lazy footballer, to me.

Also please don't bring up Jones being pick 9, it doesn't help anyone and gives us all heartburn to think we won the last 4 games of 2018 for no reason while our social inferiors down the road got Rozee and Butters.

Agree totally. I dgaf about the egomaniacal Rozee, but Butters really can football.

Nicks can coach, shouldn't be sacked, the proper rebuild started in 2022 and you're all wrong about him.

I've posted often that Nicks deserves a lot of slack for 2020-2021, but 14th/10th/15th since then (so far) is below mediocre, winning 27.5 games out of 65 in the last 3 years = 42.3%.
That's a very sackable record. Not even competitive.
Nicks can bring players together but cannot Coach when it comes to Football (but, nice bloke, ), he should be sacked, but (I repeat) I'd LOVE to be proven wrong in 2025.
We'll see .

 

[Bazz_27]

Not for my money. Disappears in games for too long too often.
The more subtle stats are damning:
0.56 goals/game.
0.15 contested marks/game ie 1 every 6 games!! ONE contested mark, every SIX games , wtf?
0.33 marks I50/game ie 1 every 3 games.
0.74 1%ers/game ie 2 every 3 games, less than one/game.
0.30 goal assists/game ie 1 every 3 games,
all suggest a lazy footballer, to me

Couldn't agree more on Cook. 5th season next year, penny doesn't seem to have dropped yet with him and doubt it will change. He is a nice kick of the footy and has pretty good vision but goes missing as you said and doesn't apply any sort of pressure. Needs to find a way to impact games by getting more ball and doing more with it (2.4 SI a game isn't enough). I see him getting passed by other players and ending up delisted after his current contract expires. Think his best chance is as a hybrid 3rd forward when Tex moves on

 

[Southerntakeover]

Curtin looked unfit, hapless and confused in that Brisbane game. My thoughts would be that he would have his confidence further destroyed by keeping him out there, instead he went back to the SANFL, developed, got more comfortable and we got that Dan Curtin on Sunday arvo. What a beautiful left foot and hands in close, the Geelong one was hard because even I was thinking "who are we subbing off??" Then the ball got stuck in that broadcast pocket.

Just ignore the whole playing him in a position that no one with ever sense ever would have to destroy his confidence in the first place, truly a coaching masterclass.

 

[davos44]

-- odd selections
--- player favoritism eg Murphy's continued selection is indefensible
--- retaining senior players with mediocre or bad form
--- lack of Plan B on Game Day (especially his failures to make moves when oppo teams get a run of goals going)
--- stubbornness and refusal to admit to any mistakes of his own.

Favouritism:
We don't have any other small forwards, apart from McHenry. We lost Betts, Cameron, Stengle and then Newchurch wasn't very good. We have Rachele more as a HFF and Rankine is a hybrid mid/fwd. We are way to top heavy (talls) and we lack small forwards.


Retaining Senior Players:
I think with Hinge, MM, Nank and Bond coming in its the right time for Smith to exit stage right. Hasn't been the same player since his 2017 Knee (and that 666 rule). You do need experienced players on every line to kind help control situations or assist with direction but when you are trying to hack the ball out of mid air into Laird's face its time to go.

We need Laird, as much as I hate it, we need him and his 2nd half of the year has been much better. He holds onto the footy, he uses his hands more and doesn't do those stupid blind kicks corner kicks (as much? Any longer?).


Lack of Plan B:
Agree its something that needs urgent attention, when we don't have control of a game it goes badly wrong. I think Nicks should be down at boundary line but he does need more senior experience in the box as well. Someone who has some match day nous to see things before they unfold. Plan B is only Plan B when it works, there could be 9 plans but if the players can't carry it out it a bit of a nonsense. Hard enough to get Plan A right sometimes.

Mistakes/Stubbornness
I think he has admitted some mistakes? I know he has used the term "we got that wrong" in a couple of press conferences this year.


Thats all from the Matthew Nicks Apologist hour for the time being

 

[davos44]

Just ignore the whole playing him in a position that no one with ever sense ever would have to destroy his confidence in the first place, truly a coaching masterclass.

What is his position? I have no idea. He seems like he can play anywhere.

He didn't seem to lose confidence, he went back to the SANFL and has gotten back in the side playing midfield. We have put him in a few centre bounces and thrown him forward as well when he went quiet on Sunday.

 

[Bazz_27]

Favouritism:
We don't have any other small forwards, apart from McHenry. We lost Betts, Cameron, Stengle and then Newchurch wasn't very good. We have Rachele more as a HFF and Rankine is a hybrid mid/fwd. We are way to top heavy (talls) and we lack small forwards.


Retaining Senior Players:
I think with Hinge, MM, Nank and Bond coming in its the right time for Smith to exit stage right. Hasn't been the same player since his 2017 Knee (and that 666 rule). You do need experienced players on every line to kind help control situations or assist with direction but when you are trying to hack the ball out of mid air into Laird's face its time to go.

We need Laird, as much as I hate it, we need him and his 2nd half of the year has been much better. He holds onto the footy, he uses his hands more and doesn't do those stupid blind kicks corner kicks (as much? Any longer?).


Lack of Plan B:
Agree its something that needs urgent attention, when we don't have control of a game it goes badly wrong. I think Nicks should be down at boundary line but he does need more senior experience in the box as well. Someone who has some match day nous to see things before they unfold. Plan B is only Plan B when it works, there could be 9 plans but if the players can't carry it out it a bit of a nonsense. Hard enough to get Plan A right sometimes.

Mistakes/Stubbornness
I think he has admitted some mistakes? I know he has used the term "we got that wrong" in a couple of press conferences this year.


Thats all from the Matthew Nicks Apologist hour for the time being

Wouldn't waste your time, some people refuse to change their opinion or listen to reason.

I'm a swing voter, I think he could've done things differently for sure but also don't think he is the worst coach in the league. I was furious in the middle of the season after the Hawks & tigers losses, in hindsight the team we sent out probably had nearly half our best 22 missing, still it was frustrating.

Next year he has to make finals otherwise that's it for me

 

[Southerntakeover]

Curtin looked unfit, hapless and confused in that Brisbane game. My thoughts would be that he would have his confidence further destroyed by keeping him out there, instead he went back to the SANFL, developed, got more comfortable

He didn't seem to lose confidence, he went back to the SANFL and has gotten back in the side playing midfield. We have put him in a few centre bounces and thrown him forward as well when he went quiet on Sunday.

He would have had his confidence 'further' destroyed if we hadn't treated him harshly, but also his confidence was never impacted.

 

[Scorpus]

Wouldn't waste your time, some people refuse to change their opinion or listen to reason.

I'm a swing voter, I think he could've done things differently for sure but also don't think he is the worst coach in the league. I was furious in the middle of the season after the Hawks & tigers losses, in hindsight the team we sent out probably had nearly half our best 22 missing, still it was frustrating.

Next year he has to make finals otherwise that's it for me

Who is the worst coach in the league in your opinion?

 

[Southerntakeover]

Wouldn't waste your time, some people refuse to change their opinion or listen to reason.

I'm a swing voter, I think he could've done things differently for sure but also don't think he is the worst coach in the league. I was furious in the middle of the season after the Hawks & tigers losses, in hindsight the team we sent out probably had nearly half our best 22 missing, still it was frustrating.

Next year he has to make finals otherwise that's it for me

Your inability to draw the link between your first and last sentences is the best bit for me.

Some people will never change their opinion no matter how much evidence is presented! Now, let me watch season six of 'can Mathew Nicks take a team to the finals', five complete seasons of evidence that says no hasn't shaken my unwavering faith.

 

[davos44]

You never did answer, would you have re-signed Nicks to 1 year after round 1 and would you do it now?

I thought I did? If we were looking at his contract right now, I would resign him for 2025.
If it was after round 1, I would have resigned him for 2 years.

After round 4, 1 year.
After the Richmond loss. 1 year.

 

[Bazz_27]

Who is the worst coach in the league in your opinion?

I'd say my bottom 4 is:
Ken
Lyon
Goodwin
Brad Scott

My top 4 are:
Longmire
Hardwick
McRae
Christ Scott

What's yours

 

[Bazz_27]

Your inability to draw the link between your first and last sentences is the best bit for me.

Some people will never change their opinion no matter how much evidence is presented! Now, let me watch season six of 'can Mathew Nicks take a team to the finals', five complete seasons of evidence that says no hasn't shaken my unwavering faith.

Prior to this season I was all for signing Nicks for 2 years and now I am saying if he doesn't make finals next year he is done. Could you explain your point to me

 

[Southerntakeover]

Prior to this season I was all for signing Nicks for 2 years and now I am saying if he doesn't make finals next year he is done. Could you explain your point to me

You smugly post things about people not being able to change their views no matter much evidence is presented, and five complete seasons of evidence is not enough for you to change your view that you just need to see more.

 

[Bazz_27]

You smugly post things about people not being able to change their views no matter much evidence is presented, and five complete seasons of evidence is not enough for you to change your view that you just need to see more.

As opposed to you being smug with your opinion?

 

[davos44]

Wouldn't waste your time, some people refuse to change their opinion or listen to reason.

I'm a swing voter, I think he could've done things differently for sure but also don't think he is the worst coach in the league. I was furious in the middle of the season after the Hawks & tigers losses, in hindsight the team we sent out probably had nearly half our best 22 missing, still it was frustrating.

Next year he has to make finals otherwise that's it for me

Agreed, if we don't play finals it will be time to go.

If we lose the first 4 games next year, the panic button may get mashed.

 

[Billy Cart]

Agreed, if we don't play finals it will be time to go.

If we lose the first 4 games next year, the panic button may get Smashed.

Fixed that for you.

 

[George Kramer]

I thought I did? If we were looking at his contract right now, I would resign him for 2025.
If it was after round 1, I would have resigned him for 2 years.

After round 4, 1 year.
After the Richmond loss. 1 year.

Why?

 

[CrowBloke]

Lack of Plan B:
Agree its something that needs urgent attention, when we don't have control of a game it goes badly wrong. I think Nicks should be down at boundary line but he does need more senior experience in the box as well. Someone who has some match day nous to see things before they unfold.

OR ... how about a (new) Coach who has that nous as part of his skills?

People seem to be very keen to get Neil Balme in to prop up/advise Nicks and cover for Nicks' deficiencies.
We're not paying Nicks multiple hundreds-of-thousands to learn on the job; the AFC is not a Coach-Training-School (or should not be one).
Get somebody who knows what to do from Day One, not stick with someone who might one day 'get' it (... if we're lucky, if we give him enough support Staff and time and extensions and opportunities and ... and ... and ...).

The AFC put all of their eggs into the Nicks basket, then literally doubled down by giving him that 2-year extension prematurely to prove that their appointment and faith in Nicks was right after assuming, like Nicks did himself, that we'd be playing Finals this year because
--- gee, we n-e-a-r-l-y made Finals last year
--- we-wuz-robbed (we wuzn't, btw)
--- after the Walsh tragedy, the 2017GF loss, the deserters (Lever, McGovern, Cameron, Keath etc), the Camp (OH us poorpoor Crows), we deserved it.
Fmd.
Flags aren't "deserved" because of previous events that create a sense of entitlement. They are earned by actual events, earning the right to play Finals by performing well in the Minor Rounds ==> Finals, then making it happen on GF day.
Under Nicks, with the players they have drafted, trained and selected, they have lost nearly twice as often as they have won. No Finals. The Nicks Experiment has failed.

 

[davos44]

He would have had his confidence 'further' destroyed if we hadn't treated him harshly, but also his confidence was never impacted.

Based on your profile pic, you will understand "context is king"

I don't believe he lost confidence at all, not in his ability to play footy anyway. Confidence is contextual at the end of the day.

But lets say he lost some confidence in his ability to impact an AFL game despite being his 2nd game in, 19 and underdone with his knee issue from last year and earlier this year:

Then; IF he was down on confidence, leaving him out there in the speed, confusion and pressure of an AFL game where he was struggling would do his confidence more harm than good.

 

[Southerntakeover]

Based on your profile pic, you will understand "context is king"

I don't believe he lost confidence at all, not in his ability to play footy anyway. Confidence is contextual at the end of the day.

But lets say he lost some confidence in his ability to impact an AFL game despite being his 2nd game in, 19 and underdone with his knee issue from last year and earlier this year:

Then; IF he was down on confidence, leaving him out there in the speed, confusion and pressure of an AFL game where he was struggling would do his confidence more harm than good.

So, your view is the decision to play him there was right because it didn't damage his confidence, but dropping him good because his confidence was damaged.

And you ask for this view to be taken seriously?

 

[FR0GGY]

I'd say my bottom 4 is:
Ken
Lyon
Goodwin
Brad Scott

My top 4 are:
Longmire
Hardwick
McRae
Christ Scott

What's yours

Wow, all 4 of those bottom 4 coaches have resumes nicks could only dream of.

 

[Coopers]

I like winning, it's nice. Should try it more often. It's incredibly frustrating when these wins come at this time of the year when they are essentially meaningless.

I'll repeat again though, just to make it reaaaaaal simple, there is no excuse whatsoever to be one of just two teams to lose to the worst team in the competition, at home.

Richmond are not a good football team, and we made them look like the Brisbane Lions.

Any amount of mental gymnastics to justify otherwise is embarrassing.

We made a bloke with first name Kamdyn look like a superstar.

I still can't get over it.

KAMDYN!!!




Ffs.