News Andrew Russell to step away at season’s end

[Aphrodite]

Russell to step away at season’s end

Andrew Russell will step away from football at the conclusion of the 2024 AFL season.

www.carltonfc.com.au

THE Carlton Football Club can confirm that after 26 years within the AFL industry, Director of High Performance Andrew Russell will step away from football at the conclusion of the 2024 AFL season.

Following six seasons at the Blues, in which time he led high performance, Russell will conclude his time at the Club, with his current contract set to expire at season’s end.

 

[JJBagger]

These “revelations” from the review are so simplistic I find them really concerning on a lot of levels.

How do football industry veterans like Russell, Voss, Lloyd and even Cook not know that building training loads in between matches increases the possibility of soft tissue injuries which are typically caused by placing too much stress on tendons?

Why would the club change tack from building players back up by playing games in the lower level, less stressful reserves environment as we did last year with positive effect, to rushing them back into the highest level off a long term injury, a strategy that has failed in the past?

Was any of that in the article? I read it, and didn't take any of that in

 

[teddy-hopkins]

These “revelations” from the review are so simplistic I find them really concerning on a lot of levels.

How do football industry veterans like Russell, Voss, Lloyd and even Cook not know that building training loads in between matches increases the possibility of soft tissue injuries which are typically caused by placing too much stress on tendons?

Why would the club change tack from building players back up by playing games in the lower level, less stressful reserves environment as we did last year with positive effect, to rushing them back into the highest level off a long term injury, a strategy that has failed in the past?

Regardless of the specifics it's obvious we've got to make some significant changes. Voss getting a bit surly about discussing the details means it's likely he's been copping flak internally... along with Russell hopefully.

We may end up getting our players back in the latter stages of the season and taking another late run at finals but when the dust settles on this it's going to go down as one of the stupidest own-goals in the history of the club and heads should roll as a result. We have gotten so much better in the SOS+ era in so many areas - appointing and retaining Russell has been the one outlier. He's been an absolute failure.

 

[katmanblue]

Not sure I read any of that in that article

It's the vibe

On SM-F926B using BigFooty.com mobile app

 

[Arr0w]

Regardless of the specifics it's obvious we've got to make some significant changes. Voss getting a bit surly about discussing the details means it's likely he's been copping flak internally... along with Russell hopefully.

We may end up getting our players back in the latter stages of the season and taking another late run at finals but when the dust settles on this it's going to go down as one of the stupidest own-goals in the history of the club and heads should roll as a result. We have gotten so much better in the SOS+ era in so many areas - appointing and retaining Russell has been the one outlier. He's been an absolute failure.

Can you point out where Voss was getting a bit "surly"

 

[Arr0w]

The false narratives are truly bizarre

Never let the truth get in the way of a good story

 

[Arr0w]

So Mihocek did another hammy after returning straight into the senior side from a hammy?

All good though, their injury list is non-existence, yeah?

 

[Beyond Blue]

Not sure I read any of that in that article

Was any of that in the article? I read it, and didn't take any of that in

Voss has said publicly they did a huge training block in the lead up to the bye after we barely put Richmond away.

Heavy training whilst also playing actual games is more likely to lead to higher levels of fatigue which is when you get injuries.

This is not rocket science. How any of these guys thought this was a good idea is beyond me given their experience.

 

[JJBagger]

Voss has said publicly they did a huge training block in the lead up to the bye after we barely put Richmond away.

Heavy training whilst also playing actual games is more likely to lead to higher levels of fatigue which is when you get injuries.

This is not rocket science. How any of these guys thought this was a good idea is beyond me given their experience.

The article didn’t state any of that though. And the training block method at the start of the season is hardly revolutionary. Hawthorn under Clarko did it, Melbourne in 2021 did it

 

[Arr0w]

Voss has said publicly they did a huge training block in the lead up to the bye after we barely put Richmond away.

Heavy training whilst also playing actual games is more likely to lead to higher levels of fatigue which is when you get injuries.

This is not rocket science. How any of these guys thought this was a good idea is beyond me given their experience.

Heavy is like ASAP, there is no scale as a comparison

 

[Opium]

Not sure I read any of that in that article

Perhaps if you read between the lines. Clearly the club has had to make adjustments due to the soft tissue injuries. Voss isn't going to publicly crucify the HP team.

 

[Arr0w]

Was JDG out for a couple of weeks, played one game, now out for a couple more weeks?

Must be just bad luck for the Pies

 

[Beyond Blue]

So Mihocek did another hammy after returning straight into the senior side from a hammy?

All good though, their injury list is non-existence, yeah?

Lots of differences between a club who has achieved the ultimate success and one still striving not do so:
- they would’ve started pre season training later than us
- maybe their players celebrated more than they should’ve and came back unfit
- maybe their players cut corners on conditioning because having won the flag they weren’t as focussed as they would’ve been in the past

Was JDG out for a couple of weeks, played one game, now out for a couple more week?

Must be just bad luck for the Pies

He sustained 2 different injuries to two different parts of the body.

 

[agro]

Not really concerned what happens at other clubs - just want to make sure we are best practice in the conditioning and rehabilitation space.

 

[Arr0w]

Lots of differences between a club who has achieved the ultimate success and one still striving not do so:

So that's the criteria between good and bad injury management? I see

- they would’ve started pre season training later than us

1 extra week over a 5 month preseason

- maybe their players celebrated more than they should’ve and came back unfit

I thought high performance is responsible for mentality and intent

- maybe their players cut corners on conditioning because having won the flag they weren’t as focussed as they would’ve been in the past

GWS has a similar injury list to us

He sustained 2 different injuries to two different parts of the body.

Like Motlop turf toe then hammy? Or Mihocek redoing a hammy like Cerra?

See, these are clear examples when people create a guess or false narratives, others can do similar with a number of players/clubs throughout the league

 

[Arr0w]

Not really concerned what happens at other clubs - just want to make sure we are best practice in the conditioning and rehabilitation space.

Absolutely, we can compare it with other high performance leaders within our own club then.

 

[Beyond Blue]

So that's the criteria between good and bad injury management? I see

The statement needs to be read with the factors as to why a drop off might happen which were outlined below that statement.

1 extra week over a 5 month preseason

I’m sure I read that a lot of our players came back early to pre season - with the years 1-4 players - whilst the Magpie premiership players took the extra 2 weeks off.

I thought high performance is responsible for mentality and intent

The approach to motivating people becomes harder after they have achieved something that they have been striving for so long. That’s why winning multiple years in a row in any sport is so difficult. It’s just human nature.

GWS has a similar injury list to us

Correct and maybe they are also investigating why their injury list is so long,
but has their injury list been this consistently long year for a number of years, like ours?

Like Motlop turf toe then hammy? Or Mihocek redoing a hammy like Cerra?

Of course we are not the only club where players reinjure themselves but it’s been happening at our club each year for a long time and with multiple players, for example:
- Cerra has had 5 hamstring strains in 2 and a half years.
- Motlop has injured his hamstring then had a setback in the rehab for that injury (separate to an initial turf toe injury) this year.
- I’ve actually lost count of how many calf strains Martin has had since he has been with us.
- Cuningham and Marchbank both sustained calf strains after their ACL injuries
- McGovern has missed games with hamstring complaints in all 6 years he has been at the club.
- Pittonet had to have surgery on his PCL at the end of 2022 after injuring it in April and then coming back too soon.
- Walsh has had ongoing issues with his back since August 2022.

See, these are clear examples when people create a guess or false narratives, others can do similar with a number of players/clubs throughout the league

I hardly think it’s a false narrative to say we have a big problem with injuries when the club comes out and acknowledges it is reviewing it’s training methods off the back of an alarmingly high number of soft tissue injuries, including some repeat injuries, to its players.

 

[Arr0w]

The statement needs to be read with the factors as to why a drop off might happen which were outlined below that statement.


I’m sure I read that a lot of our players came back early to pre season - with the years 1-4 players - whilst the Magpie premiership players took the extra 2 weeks off.


The approach to motivating people becomes harder after they have achieved something that they have been striving for so long. That’s why winning multiple years in a row in any sport is so difficult. It’s just human nature.


Correct and maybe they are also investigating why their injury list is so long,
but has their injury list been this consistently long year for a number of years, like ours?


Of course we are not the only club where players reinjure themselves but it’s been happening at our club each year for a long time and with multiple players, for example:
- Cerra has had 5 hamstring strains in 2 and a half years.
- Motlop has injured his hamstring then had a setback in the rehab for that injury (separate to an initial turf toe injury) this year.
- I’ve actually lost count of how many calf strains Martin has had since he has been with us.
- Cuningham and Marchbank both sustained calf strains after their ACL injuries
- McGovern has missed games with hamstring complaints in all 6 years he has been at the club.
- Pittonet had to have surgery on his PCL at the end of 2022 after injuring it in April and then coming back too soon.
- Walsh has had ongoing issues with his back since August 2022.



I hardly think it’s a false narrative to say we have a big problem with injuries when the club comes out and acknowledges it is reviewing it’s training methods off the back of an alarmingly high number of soft tissue injuries, including some repeat injuries, to its players.

Hopefully we can all appreciate how narratives change, but moreso, how it's scripted to strengthen an opinion or stance

No issue if people want Russell gone, in fact I admire staunch views, but IMHO, it loses strength when it's based on shifting or inconsistent opinions

People claim that we have the worst injury list the competition, but when other clubs are mentioned it reverts back to "we only care about Carlton" . So which one is it?

I actually don't care whether Russell remains or not, my focus will be what we do with injury prone players

 

[teddy-hopkins]

Can you point out where Voss was getting a bit "surly"

So passive aggressive posting LOLs on someone else's post.

 

[teddy-hopkins]

Like Motlop turf toe then hammy? Or Mihocek redoing a hammy like Cerra?

See, these are clear examples when people create a guess or false narratives, others can do similar with a number of players/clubs throughout the league

I think Motlop did turf toe, hammy then re-injured his hammy again.

So please continue talking about false narratives. In fairness amongst the injury carnage of this year it's easy to miss one here or there.

I'm starting to suspect that no matter what happens - 40 players could go down with hammys at once - you'll never admit you were wrong and have been all along.

 

[teddy-hopkins]

Hopefully we can all appreciate how narratives change, but moreso, how it's scripted to strengthen an opinion or stance

No issue if people want Russell gone, in fact I admire staunch views, but IMHO, it loses strength when it's based on shifting or inconsistent opinions

People claim that we have the worst injury list the competition, but when other clubs are mentioned it reverts back to "we only care about Carlton" . So which one is it?

I actually don't care whether Russell remains or not, my focus will be what we do with injury prone players

You spend a lot of time arguing about something you don't care about.

 

[teddy-hopkins]

Hopefully we can all appreciate how narratives change, but moreso, how it's scripted to strengthen an opinion or stance

No issue if people want Russell gone, in fact I admire staunch views, but IMHO, it loses strength when it's based on shifting or inconsistent opinions

People claim that we have the worst injury list the competition, but when other clubs are mentioned it reverts back to "we only care about Carlton" . So which one is it?

I actually don't care whether Russell remains or not, my focus will be what we do with injury prone players

When the club itself admits it is actively reviewing it's approach to injury/ fitness surely the argument is over and you're just clutching at straws. It may be time to admit defeat?

View attachment Camelot-TLE-99A_war.webp

 

[Arr0w]

I'm starting to suspect that no matter what happens - 40 players could go down with hammys at once - you'll never admit you were wrong and have been all along.

I'm confident that I have shared my concerns when it comes to injuries and injury prone players.

People claiming that Russell is poor due to players returning, only to reinjure themselves, yet ignore that other clubs have had similar situations and a longer injury list

You spend a lot of time arguing about something you don't care about.

Not arguing, I enjoying debating a wide range of subjects on this forum. From drafting, list management, weekly games etc.

And unlike others, i don't need to focus on just the negatives of a loss or create fictional content to press home an opinion

When the club itself admits it is actively reviewing it's approach to injury/ fitness surely the argument is over and you're just clutching at straws.

It's great that the club is focusing on high performance, hopefully they are just as diligent on other areas

Cook also eluded to Russell inheriting injury prone players, is he clutching at straws too?

It may be time to admit defeat?

And now shutting down debate, like you believe you have unlocked some gotcha moment, that only one person is at fault and the debate should cease

 

[Beyond Blue]

Hopefully we can all appreciate how narratives change, but moreso, how it's scripted to strengthen an opinion or stance

No issue if people want Russell gone, in fact I admire staunch views, but IMHO, it loses strength when it's based on shifting or inconsistent opinions

People claim that we have the worst injury list the competition, but when other clubs are mentioned it reverts back to "we only care about Carlton" . So which one is it?

I actually don't care whether Russell remains or not, my focus will be what we do with injury prone players

Happy to agree to disagree. You make some very valid points - I think I have as well - and it almost goes without saying there are other factors at play (such as the injury prone history of several players) but IMO there’s a body of evidence to suggest Russell’s methods aren’t working and are possibly contributing to our current injury crisis.

After 6 years of him running the program I think he has had enough time. I find it hard to believe he would be hitting any KPIs so I think in a results based business his time is over. That said I expect 2 industry veterans like Cook and Lloyd would be completely across the issues so I trust them (Cook in particular) and will support whatever decision they make on this.

 

[Arr0w]

Happy to agree to disagree. You make some very valid points - I think I have as well - and it almost goes without saying there are other factors at play (such as the injury prone history of several players) but IMO there’s a body of evidence to suggest Russell’s methods aren’t working and are possibly contributing to our current injury crisis.

After 6 years of him running the program I think he has had enough time. I find it hard to believe he would be hitting any KPIs so I think in a results based business his time is over. That said I expect 2 industry veterans like Cook and Lloyd would be completely across the issues so I trust them (Cook in particular) and will support whatever decision they make on this.

No issue if you or anyone else wants only Russell gone purely on our injury numbers and believe someone else can extract better outcomes with the exact same players

 

[slashin_velvet]

No issue if you or anyone else wants only Russell gone purely on our injury numbers and believe someone else can extract better outcomes with the exact same players

Do you keep extrapolating incorrect positions from what people say because you want to continue arguing?

He didn't say Russell is the "only" thing that should change - he just didn't refer to other staff because this thread is about Russell.