One-Eyed Richmond Forum
Football => Richmond Rant => Topic started by: one-eyed on April 16, 2009, 04:55:32 AM
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Richmond a club in search of a spine
Patrick Smith | April 16, 2009
HERE was the incompetence of the Richmond Football Club caught in a few seconds. It might have been just a blip in time but it was representative of two decades of a club that has swung between rabble and ridicule.
The media waited outside the Richmond rooms on Tuesday waiting for the players to arrive for training. Up walked the captain Chris Newman, who is meant to be both the physical and spiritual leader of the team. He was asked by one of the journalists about the issue of the future of Terry Wallace's coaching. He muttered something on the move and disappeared into the rooms.
That is damning on two fronts. Newman, as captain, should have responded. Stood his ground, stared down the cameras and supported his club and coach. Secondly, the media should not have felt empowered to ask the players such questions. Immediately the media had turned so viciously on Wallace - and that was obvious from Monday night's football review shows - Richmond officials should have made it overwhelmingly obvious that Wallace would coach the side until his contract is up at the end of the year.
Because there was no meaningful response - was there one at all? - the media was entitled to ask was this the end of the coach. The Tigers were no wins from three games, not a devastating result given the team played Carlton, Geelong and the Western Bulldogs. But it was a scoreline that allowed the media to think about Wallace's short-term future because the president Gary March and Wallace had an all but dysfunctional relationship last year and it is said to be no better this time around.
So this momentary confrontation between player and media showed how bereft Richmond was of any sort of leadership. If Newman had been advised not to comment, then he had been poorly counselled.
If he chose not to speak on Wallace then the club has the wrong man as skipper. That Matthew Richardson, the club's champion player, spoke passionately on radio the same day in defence of Wallace illustrated that Richmond had made the wrong man captain.
There can be only two explanations for Richmond's tepid reaction to the attack on its coach. One, the board and administrators have no idea of crisis management. Or it is planned to replace Wallace before the end of the year. If that is the case then the club should sack the coach immediately. Leaving him on life support will create a toxic environment in a club as players seek to look after themselves in readiness for a new master.
Wallace has been let down. March is monosyllabic in his coach's defence and other significant officials at the club may well have disappeared. Craig Cameron, general manager of football operations and nominally Wallace's boss, has not been heard or seen since he defiantly said Richmond would not recruit Ben Cousins. Gulp.
Tony Free is a committeeman who was given the brief to review the club's football department. He did one radio interview, appeared to have an independent mind, and so has not been sighted since. And if he has opened his mouth it is only to say: "I'm not Tony Free and, if I was, I'm still not here."
Then there is the chief executive Steven Wright, a shrewd operator, but there have been more sightings of the Abominable Snowman than the Tiger official since he took over in 2004. The last thing anyone heard him say was: "Tell Tony Free I'm coming."
AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou told The Australian yesterday that the league investigators, in conjunction with ASIO, were probing reports that Richmond had established a gulag inside Guantanamo Bay. "We have been previously told that Wright, Cameron and Free are employed by Richmond. We have not been able to establish that although preliminary investigations point to three men, wearing Tiger beanies, being escorted from Punt Rd in chains. They seemed to be in excellent spirits, singing and generally carousing."
If anyone thought Richmond's present predicament an aberration, think back to the drafting of Cousins. At various times Wallace, March and Cameron all said publicly and emphatically that the club would not pick Cousins. So clear in thought were the Richmond officials that Cameron told several young players that they were in consideration for the pre-season draft because the acquisition of Cousins was not being considered. So the Tigers pick Cousins.
It leaves observers less than confident that what Richmond says, Richmond will do. That might be driving the Richmond silence. Perhaps, like Cousins, they don't have a clue what they are doing - or going to do.
The club went and got Cousins at the death but was embarrassingly unprepared for the big bass drum that came with him. The club froze in the first match against Carlton, struck hopeless by the hype and supporter speculation. Confronted by a 0-3 start and a wonky Cousins hamstring, the club leadership has evaporated altogether. If the Tigers are to show some backbone on the field, then it must be matched with equally strong leadership off it. And it ain't happening.
One final thing. The AFL's most recent intelligence indicates Cameron, Free and Wright have started up a team in the Tiger gulag and surroundings. Sadly, but predictably, it is said they have recruited abysmally once again.
http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25339866-7583,00.html
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Richmond officials should have made it overwhelmingly obvious that Wallace would coach the side until his contract is up at the end of the year.
Because Gary March has already said Wallace is the coach for this year. How many times does he have to say it :sleep
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What a piece of tripe.
If the media are so sure on what Newman should be saying and acting maybe they could just print his "words" without consulting him, since it is what he should be doing it shouldnt be an issue.
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gotta love the frustraion creedping into these creeps in the media, cant get a grab so they make it ALL up....SUFFER :lol
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I'm not as fired up as others about these articles. When we lose we get the boot when we are winning the papers as a whole give us plenty of largely positive press. That's the burden and glory of being a Richmond fan.
Few stupid things by Patrick Smith e.g. us not having a clue what we were doing in draft week re. Cuz, but is is Patrick Smith
One final thing. The AFL's most recent intelligence indicates Cameron, Free and Wright have started up a team in the Tiger gulag and surroundings. Sadly, but predictably, it is said they have recruited abysmally once again.
WTF does this mean? "Most recent intelligence"? "Tiger gulag"? I don't know if he knows what the Gulag was. "Started up a team"? WTF?? Pseudointellectual rubbish that came out of Patrick Smiths ar5ehole that he quickly transcribed before it ran down the length of his leg.
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I've just got to love you Patrick. :bow
This is the sort of stuff that Pullitzer prizes are made of. :thumbsup