The fact that it took a rampaging Port at their home ground to stop our run is a positive for mine not a negative. Port could realistically play and even win a GF this year so I don't feel the same sense of failure as I did last year.
A pass mark is always finals I we have done that two years in a row and learned some valuable lessons a long the way. You don't win 9 games in a row and turn around your season to the point of playing finals without making some important changes as a team. I think people are either too skeptical or too worried about having their expectations raised too high only to have them cast down again. In many ways I don't blame you because history has shown us this is the pattern we follow.
I actually think this year was a huge positive though. The changes we made to our expectations, standards, leadership, accountability and unity as a
playing group was massive. We have always looked to the coaches and individual players to change our fortunes in the past (and targeted them if we failed) but
it is from the team collectively that success has to come. All the best clubs have a culture that is driven from their playing group and leaders. We have never had that until now.
We have always had poor leadership, poor expectations and poor mental strength as a result. Surely people can see the changes that have been made now. You can hear it in the interviews with Maric, Lids and Miles. You can see it in the way we finally started to fight back when we were behind and win. In 2013 we rarely if ever did that. Even in our loss to Port we actually fought out the game - this is a complete change of attitude. You can feel it in their sense of belief in each other.
I understand people want to look to the first half of the season and to our heart wrenching defeats against the Dees and Dogs in particular, but you must be able to see the positive changes we made. Bringing Miles into the team was a huge positive though people even try and turn this into a negative. Stating that he should have been in earlier is like a kid getting a present but angrily declaring that he should have been given it weeks a go. When you get a gift be bloody thankful because to get a player like Miles from another team would probably cost us a first round draft pick given the immediate impact he has had.
Our backline has never looked stronger and Astbury's form early was impressive. Lids more forward was a fantastic luxury driven by Miles unexpected form. Maric continues to be my pick for our most important player given his influence around stoppages and as a leader now. The negative impact his absence early made to our team can't be denied. Rance has grown in confidence and stature. Ellis was fantastic. Griffiths came of age. Dusty was consistent and ran out games. Positives everywhere.
This year has shown us what it takes as a playing group to be successful. Regardless of individuals now our team knows what is expected from each other on and off the field. That to me makes this year a far more positive year than even 2013. I see 2015 being a huge
positive year for us
