I can't watch Brown video
01 June 2005 Herald Sun
Terry Wallace
FRIDAY night in the coach's box, when Nathan Brown broke two bones in his leg, was one of the worst experiences I've had as a senior coach.
You go through the emotional highs and lows of winning and losing big games, but to see a close friend seriously injured in such a graphic manner is something that will live with me for the rest of my life.
The call in the box was that someone was down and seriously hurt.
I looked back and knew immediately it was Browny and within an instant the groans and sighs from the back of the box were deafening as the replay of the incident was shown over and over.
I purposely didn't watch any of the footage on the big screen or the monitors in the box.
I consider myself a fairly emotional person and I didn't want to be dealing with those emotions in such a public forum.
Once we got the organisation of the team in place, there was some down time and I couldn't help but think back to the first time I set eyes on my little mate who was now in extreme pain.
Watching a trial game between the Victorian Country and Metro teams at Oakleigh in 1996, I was mesmerised by this young, fresh-faced kid who looked more like a girl with his long blond hair.
This lad's skills, poise and timing were exquisite -- better than I had seen in a long time.
At the time I had no realisation I would be coaching at AFL level or that the relationship that was to form with this skinny kid would see me draft him, then coach and mentor him in his developing years.
I witnessed him become one of the competition's finer players and created a close bond.
There have been many weird and wonderful experiences, such as swimming in the Brisbane River in the wee hours of the morning after a finals loss, and our reunion to try to change the fortunes of the Richmond Football Club.
To see him carted off in that manner was a shock. I still have not watched the footage.
I knew immediately that he was in serious trouble and even through game review I decided to fast-forward and not sit through the incident.
After the game …THE rooms on Friday night had an eerie feeling about them as the players trudged back in. We had lost the game by 57 points and people were looking at each other in disbelief. After covering off some radio interviews, there were about three people in attendance at the late night press conference. It was a total waste of time as the others already had their story to file.
I then made a bee-line to the hospital (Vimy House), only to find half my team already there.
Browny was lying in the bed and looked in pain, but I'm still not sure what was hurting him the most -- the injury or the consequences for him and the club.
Nathan still seemed to be taking it all in his stride and the one thing that people underestimate in his character is just how tough he is.
Through all the fun he has about being a metrosexual with manicures and facials, he is legitimately a tough person on the field of battle. He was not prepared for anyone to see either on camera or in his hospital bed just how much he was hurting.
The show must go on …AFTER visiting Browny a couple of times over the weekend I was next to meet the playing group on Monday morning.
I didn't want to overcook the situation and I know that Rodney Eade spoke to all divisions of the club when Luke Darcy went down a few weeks ago.
I believed my work was all about the preparation of the senior group.
Our review process was as normal, with all concentration on the team's key performance indicators and where we had not reached our targets.
The time then came to speak to the group about our next challenge, the West Coast Eagles on Saturday at the MCG, and of course this meant planning without Nathan Brown.
When a high-profile player goes down, football hysteria sets in and this was certainly the case with comments made over the weekend.
I'd heard that certain players needed to lift and give an extra 10 per cent to the team, while our first-year recruit Brett Deledio needed to rise to the challenge and replace Nathan.
Along with these gems, others were declaring the season over and all was lost.
I tried to explain to the group that this was all nonsense.
I have no belief that anyone has an extra 10 per cent to give, while Deledio is his own person and not Nathan Brown. He is 18 years old and should be allowed to develop as a young player finding his way in the game.
As for our season, it is up to us to show that a united group is an extremely strong force and will not roll over after one high-profile injury.
Nathan Brown has the ability to generate around 66 goals a year or three a game.
We have not got a replacement player to step in and fill the breach, nor should we need one.
It must be our style of play that remains true to itself and all improved efforts shown by all players this season should not be affected by Nathan Brown's absence from the goalsquare.
We'll try to rotate players through this goalsquare position in an attempt to get three goals a game from the position rather than any one individual.
Good teams in any sport have a structure in place that remains the same regardless of personnel. There lies our first challenge.
My old coach Allan Jeans used to say to me when I was a young man "crisis creates opportunity" and I now understand his words far more clearly. We have a wonderful opportunity this weekend to come out in force and show that we are a very tight club both on and off the field.
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