What They're Saying - The Bulldogs Media Thread

[Clay]

I don't have much emotional inclination one way or another regarding Griff. What's done is done and I won't talk highly about what he did but I feel no need to spread the bad word either.

Would rather focus on the future.

 

[Canine]

Here's a more positive article about the coming season... I thought the second last paragraph was interesting. Libba states, in reference to Beveridge, that "if Stringer or Hunter try to take screamers and show their flair, he is not going to hold them back". Does that imply that McCartney really did try to stifle the players' creative side? When posters suggested that last season, I thought the idea was ludicrous. Perhaps there was something to it afterall.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...dogs-says-tom-liberatore-20150213-13crz8.html

 

[Mutt]

Here's a more positive article about the coming season... I thought the second last paragraph was interesting. Libba states, in reference to Beveridge, that "if Stringer or Hunter try to take screamers and show their flair, he is not going to hold them back". Does that imply that McCartney really did try to stifle the players' creative side? When posters suggested that last season, I thought the idea was ludicrous. Perhaps there was something to it afterall.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...dogs-says-tom-liberatore-20150213-13crz8.html

There are a few concerning things coming to light which don't reflect that well on Macca.

As a former strong supporter of his, it pains me to say now that I'm glad he's gone. My assessment of him was misguided, as it now seems to me he was incapable of implementing his strategy and his methods were poorly executed in his final season in particular. Shame.

 

[fargy]

Here's a more positive article about the coming season... I thought the second last paragraph was interesting. Libba states, in reference to Beveridge, that "if Stringer or Hunter try to take screamers and show their flair, he is not going to hold them back". Does that imply that McCartney really did try to stifle the players' creative side? When posters suggested that last season, I thought the idea was ludicrous. Perhaps there was something to it afterall.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...dogs-says-tom-liberatore-20150213-13crz8.html

In fairness he said in the next paragraph that 'I don't think we were held back last year'. Whether that's just wanting to not make an issue of what he said or it's the truth we don't know. I think the best thing for everyone is to accept McCartney is gone, like him or hate him I don't see the point in rehashing old issues all the time.

 

[fronkalicious]

Magic comments from Libba. Love that he said we can make the 8 and love that the players are keen to let their natural games out.

Also love that Libba didn't trot out a bunch of bollocks cliches. He should keep the honest quotes coming. Good man.

 

[TheHoneyBadger]

Libba's a god damn gun. What a man.

There are a few concerning things coming to light which don't reflect that well on Macca.

As a former strong supporter of his, it pains me to say now that I'm glad he's gone. My assessment of him was misguided, as it now seems to me he was incapable of implementing his strategy and his methods were poorly executed in his final season in particular. Shame.

Aside from the Hunter family breakfast saga (I'm shaking with laughter just typing that out), which has taken on a life of it's own in a blend between a Shakespearean tragedy and a John Cleese skit, I've heard very little in regards to the back end of Macca's tenure.

I was a big supporter of his, and in the few dealings I had with him, found him to be polite and friendly in the extreme, appreciative of the support, and, much to my delight, very open about his work and his players.

It distresses me to read this, knowing how supportive of McCartney (within reason) you were during his reign as coach. I don't need to know the details, it's not my business, but I can hardly comprehend the extent to which relationships had broken down within the club.

 

[Canine]

In fairness he said in the next paragraph that 'I don't think we were held back last year'. Whether that's just wanting to not make an issue of what he said or it's the truth we don't know. I think the best thing for everyone is to accept McCartney is gone, like him or hate him I don't see the point in rehashing old issues all the time.

I hear ya. I certainly don't want to start another argument about the previous coach, of who I was a fan, I just thought that Libba's coments were interesting.

 

[fronkalicious]

There are a few concerning things coming to light which don't reflect that well on Macca.

As a former strong supporter of his, it pains me to say now that I'm glad he's gone. My assessment of him was misguided, as it now seems to me he was incapable of implementing his strategy and his methods were poorly executed in his final season in particular. Shame.

Do you think he was just selling us a story mutt?? I love his overall philosophies on the game but agree we just played a shite brand of footy under him.

 

[VitalDread]

Magic comments from Libba. Love that he said we can make the 8 and love that the players are keen to let their natural games out.

Also love that Libba didn't trot out a bunch of bollocks cliches. He should keep the honest quotes coming. Good man.

The most honest footy player i have ever mate
Great bloke.

 

[Pannalstaroz]

Meh Griffen's thoughts and feelings ceased to mean anything to me the day he decided to request a trade and go 'pig hunting'. Those are the actions of a scared little boy not a fully grown adult.

Exactly. Well said. Time will tell whether he was intellectual enough to comprehend the gravity of the situation.

 

[Pannalstaroz]

No, but what we do know is he ran away, then refused to take calls. That's a grown up way to react. It has also not been denied by him or GWS that he was talking to them about moving early in 2014, not just after his "chats" with Cameron towards the end of the season.

Yet he continues to say the club treated him well...

So what are we laying off exactly?

When Griff went pig shooting. "If I don't answer my phone, it'll all go away...."

 

[Mutt]

Do you think he was just selling us a story mutt?? I love his overall philosophies on the game but agree we just played a shite brand of footy under him.

McCartney is a very genuine man - he wasn't selling a story - he didn't possess all of the qualities required to be a good AFL coach.

How the people in charge of the club took three years to work that out beggars belief - shame on them. How the hell has Graham Lowe survived?

 

[threenewpadlocks]

Do you think he was just selling us a story mutt?? I love his overall philosophies on the game but agree we just played a shite brand of footy under him.

I just reckon it was outdated. I reckon his part in the 2007 Geelong premiership left an impression on us and that dour, win the contested ball, quick handball style that Geelong played in 2007 was what he wanted to implement with out club. Problem was the game evolves much faster tactically than that and by the time he came to us in 2012 it was outdated. Winning the contested ball is a lot less important in 2012-4 than it was in 2007 and isn't the "buzzstat" as it was back then.

 

[fronkalicious]

McCartney is a very genuine man - he wasn't selling a story - he didn't possess all of the qualities required to be a good AFL coach.

How the people in charge of the club took three years to work that out beggars belief - shame on them. How the hell has Graham Lowe survived?

He clearly wasn't being straight with supporters and members in the back end of 2014. Annoyed me when he said after the last round that we'd been training like shite for 6/8 weeks (paraphrasing there). Understand why he didn't go public with our declining training form, but still felt like we'd been lied to over that period. What's done is done though. I'd love to read a book on the McCartney era at the dogs.

 

[Super Hans]

Aside from the Hunter family breakfast saga

What's this?

 

[Fossie 32]

What's this?

Apparently Macca belittled Hunter for having breakfast with his Mum at the cafe at the club

 

[Norm De Guerre]

He clearly wasn't being straight with supporters and members in the back end of 2014. Annoyed me when he said after the last round that we'd been training like shite for 6/8 weeks (paraphrasing there). Understand why he didn't go public with our declining training form, but still felt like we'd been lied to over that period. What's done is done though. I'd love to read a book on the McCartney era at the dogs.

The last few chapters would be a page turning horror story that would have Stephen King reaching for his night light in terror.

I think Brendan McCartney may have in fact been a giant shape shifting spider living deep in a cave feeding on the fears and souls of children everywhere.

1954 up!

 

[Super Hans]

Apparently Macca belittled Hunter for having breakfast with his Mum at the cafe at the club

Jesus. The more that comes out about Macca the worse he seems to look. Wonder if he was the same at Geelong.

 

[gangsta deluxe]

I've heard school level stories about Macca in this respect (I.e absolute campaigner).

Nonetheless, he had some positive attributes, and fortunately these are ones that last. Our youngest do seem to have developed long term qualities in his tenure. He had precisely zero short term benefits lol.

**** I would have been a better match day coach than him. Seriously, that should have raised flags. I feel like we were all a bit brainwashed with the long term focus. Ffs, we forgave the worst kind of match day failures on the basis of building a team.

 

[TedDougChris]

McCartney is a very genuine man - he wasn't selling a story - he didn't possess all of the qualities required to be a good AFL coach.

It is an interesting parallel that both Macca and Griff seemed to lack at least a few of the skills needed to occupy positions at the highest level within football clubs and as a result, neither are still at our club.... Would it have been different if either one had possessed just a little bit more of what they were lacking ? Could a compromise or workable solution been found ?

It's a shame, as I strongly supported the concept that we were trying to build. Would it have been different if the list wasn't in such poor state when Macca took over, or if GWS and GCS were introduced later rather than earlier. Impossible to say....

 

[SonOfScray]

Apparently Macca belittled Hunter for having breakfast with his Mum at the cafe at the club

First I'd heard of this. I just can't see that being true. He was very keen on families being involved and feeling welcome at the Club.

 

[Some Idiot]

Pre season puff pieces, such excite, much unexpected.

 

[Proffessor]

So much hate, directed at the messenger rather than the problem.

The problem was McCartney, and it was all along. It didn't just get bad at the end. It was bad all the way through, people just maintained faith that there was some method in the madness until it became painfully obvious that his strategies would not be successful, especially not in the playing lifetime of our senior players.


For any senior players, turning up to work each day and trying your guts out when the club wasn't, must have been incredibly frustrating. No wonder Griffen was unhappy. How would you feel being captain of a team that was just going through the motions and wasting the best years of your career, intentionally? Having to act as a spokesman supporting the party line that the club was on the right path when you believed the exact opposite, a nice addition of salt into his wounds.

For those of you who say you liked McCartney's philosophies, I suggest that you reassess this because it is his rebuilding philosophies that were the heart of the problem. If you go back and look at his coaching tenure, you could write a book on it that would be the quintessential 'what not to do' manual for senior coaches.

The club should be asking itself some serious questions about why it continued to support such an incompetent and poorly performing coach for so long, and continued to support him even after senior players were both leaving in droves and bringing complaints to your attention. Even after he left they were far too complimentary towards him.

It is laughable that people can say that the club had dealt with the players concerns. The only way to truly deal with those concerns was to show him the door and they didn't do that until Griffen pulled the pin.

I am sad that he won't be playing for the red, white, and blue any more but I will be forever grateful that he helped remove McCartney from the club.

 

[Zeno The Great]

There are no such things as problems only opportunities, and from what has happened we now have a couple of great ones. We have a young and passionate list, headed by a captain who could not love his club his any more. Griff wasn't the right man, he let us down, he is gone. I haven't lost a wink of sleep over it. Macca to his credit stuck to his beliefs, unfortunately it is very clear the way he went about it was completely wrong and he lost the group. Haven't lost a wink of sleep over him going either.

The drink looks like the type of guy players will respect but can talk and relate to, and the departure of Griff made it possible for us to land the biggest and brightest tadpole in the whole pond. Although my expectations in terms of wins and losses this season are very low, i've haven't been this excited to see this many young guns evolve for a very long time.

There are about 5 or 6 guys on our list who could be genuine A grade superstars, looking forward to seeing them lift those others around them to build a team that wants to die for each other, a team that can seriously challenge again. Really hoping for a few lesser lights like Jong and Hrovat develop into very good regulars too. Exciting times at the kennel. Go dogs!

 

[JJHunter]

Here's a more positive article about the coming season... I thought the second last paragraph was interesting. Libba states, in reference to Beveridge, that "if Stringer or Hunter try to take screamers and show their flair, he is not going to hold them back". Does that imply that McCartney really did try to stifle the players' creative side? When posters suggested that last season, I thought the idea was ludicrous. Perhaps there was something to it afterall.

http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-ne...dogs-says-tom-liberatore-20150213-13crz8.html

A direct quote from a player...
He took all enjoyment and fun out of playing footy.

tried telling everyone last year After being told about the disharmony - and people say the players shouldn't run the club.

Everyone Getting an idea now of how important it is to have a happy workplace