What are some effects that could've changed a premiership team's season

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I'm gonna try and hit this again but "off field" stuff.

1997 -
Modra
.
If Modra plays the Crows probably win BUT it also probably means that Ellen & Jarman don't play the roles they do. Even if Modra kicks a bag, it might have meant the Saints are in with a shot.

Spida & Lazar injuries.
Spida was red hot before he got hurt. If he plays, who knows. Then his back up in Lazar Vidovic goes down and we end up having to ruck 3rd stringer Brett Cook.

Nicky Winmar
It was a huge call for Winmar to play the GF given his father had passed away the day before. While the boys would have revved up to play their hardest there's no doubt that this left the group in a less than ideal spot in their preparation.

2004 -
The Prelim Crowd

It was early in the game but he Saints started with all the momentum. G-Train kicks his 100th goal, the crowd invades, Port regroup and it turns into an absolute war.

2005 -
Nick Davis.

That last qtr not only changed the Swans history but also the Cats & Saints. Geelong would put the squad on notice and then have a pretty harsh review 12 months later. That Saints would run out of gas in the prelim against a team that felt like they could win from anywhere.

If the Cats got through in 2005 that would have been a prelim for the ages. Who knows what would have happened with either club after that.

2009 -
Schneider mocks the ump.

It was essentially a meaningless match vs North late in the season. The Saints were on their way to the minor premiership when, following a call that probably should have gone his way, Adam Schneider decided to turn and mocking clap at the umpire and mouth off.

It was probably meaningless overall but when you have a game as close as the 2009 GF, things like the Hawkins poster start to fall into tin foil hat theory...

2010
"It's only half time"
One of the biggest calls in premiership history.

After the initial game was a draw the Saints cancelled their plans and sent everyone home to "rest up" and get ready for the review/planning for the replay.

The Magpies didn't. They got everyone together for the dinner as planned and reinforced the message: "It's only half time".

While the Saints players went home and stressed about what could have been, the Pies were being laser focused on what was still to be done.

Ball & Maxy
It was a brave call to leave Luke Ball on the bench in the 2009 GF, one that ended up with the former skipper leaving the Saints.

After being denied a trade to.his preferred team in Collingwood, Ball nominated for the draft. With some controversy around how he handled things re: interviews and medical appointments, Ball ended up at the Pies.

Less spoken about is the hiring of former Saints full back Max Hudghton.

Max was left out of the 2009 Saints team for Zac Dawson and retired following that season.

The Pies pounced and hired him as an assistant immediately.

Between Ball & Hudghton there was an intimate knowledge of the Saints players and their coaching setup.

The Pies took full advantage, with young gun Nathan Brown playing the game of his life on Saints skipper Nick Riewoldt thanks, in part, to the tips and tricks he learned from Hudghton.
 

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What are some effects that could've changed a premiership team's season

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