Brisbane, Geelong, St Kilda, Collingwood, Carlton, Hawthorn ... they have all gone through periods like this. Periods where consensus was they had a good young list but were desperately inconsistent and put up some horrible performances.
Many of the coaches have drawn angst from supporters with question marks over their ability to take the team that final step.
The thing these clubs have in common is they stuck to their guns and provided stability.
The exception here is St Kilda and they never quite made it to the final prize and now look like they won't.
Carlton are on their way but it's too early to judge the final outcome.
