Mick, Denis and the cult of the supercoach
Les Zigomanis
Citizen Journalist
Why do some coaches succeed, whilst others fail?
Why do some enjoy prolonged success, whilst others only fleeting fame?
It can't just be about lists. Sure, a supercoach mightn't get much more out of a poor list than an average coach, whilst an average coach might taste ultimate success if put in charge of a super-list. In these cases, diluting footy to the basest equation – on-field success – the grading of coaches might appear almost negligible.
But football's about more than on-field success.
And it's here where you really differentiate the calibre of coaches.
Football is about building for success. It's about identifying weaknesses in lists and team structures. It's about man-management of a group of different personalities. It's about player development. Yes, as the game evolves, clubs are appointing more and more staff to handle each speciality, but it's still the coach who oversees everything.
As a Collingwood supporter, I was dismayed by the club's standing towards the end of the 90s. From premiers in 1990 to wooden-spooners in 1999, with a list full of unfulfilled talents, prospects needing guiding and nurturing, and – most of all – mediocre players.
How many coaches could've rebuilt that list within three years to reach a grand final? How many coaches could've taken the champion Nathan Buckley already was in the 90s, and made him a better player? Or made guys like Scott Burns, Anthony Rocca, Paul Licuria, and James Clement – who was a discard at Fremantle into great players?
There have been coaches who were highly regarded due to successful stints at one or more clubs, who then failed when they walked into new assignments. If those clubs were trainwrecks, do we just blame the trainwrecks? Do we just say they didn't have the players to succeed? Do we say that no coach would've fared better with the resources at hand?
Most people feel Dennis Pagan walked into a hapless assignment at Carlton, and that nobody else would've fared better. And, certainly, Carlton were hamstrung due to draft penalties imposed upon them. But would another coach have recycled as extensively as Pagan, or employed players with short-term futures instead of experimenting with youth which might have a future? Again, the draft picks weren't there, but Carlton's currently highly regarded full back, Michael Jamison, was taken with Pick 17 ... in the 2007 Rookie Draft. Sometimes, you need to look outside the box.
Terry Wallace, on the other hand, had access to draft picks during his time at Richmond. In the 2004 National Draft, Richmond had five picks in the top twenty. In the 2005 National, they had another pick in the top ten. Of these six players, only one player has survived at Richmond, and only three in the league.
Granted, drafting isn't an exact science but, usually, the higher the pick, the better the chance of landing a player who'll offer quality and – barring injury – longevity. Richmond, however, will themselves admit during this time that their player development wasn't as good as it could've been. Of these six players they drafted, Brett Deledio is the only one who's had a credible career.
I'm certain, however, that some coaches would've fared better honing raw material into a quality product. This is not to denigrate Pagan and Wallace. They were dealing with extenuating circumstances (Pagan the draft penalties, Wallace Richmond's under-funded football department). But that is also part of the point.
Footy presents so many different possibilities. Some coaches – even highly regarded coaches – mightn't be the right fit for a certain set of circumstances. Some coaches might be suited to a certain set, but not to others. Some might not be suited at all. And some might have the nous to tackle and succeed at any.
While results ultimately personify and decide the way history remembers a coach, it would be imprudent to dismiss the importance of everything which a coach needs to do to see that his team succeeds.
After all, premierships aren't built in a day.
http://www.backpagelead.com.au/afl/8689-mick-denis-and-the-cult-of-the-supercoach
