‘Not advertising on Seek!’ Tigers boss rejects great coaching ‘myth’ in hunt to replace DimmaCatherine Healey
Fox Sports
July 5th, 2023 9:15 pmRichmond boss Brendon Gale doesn’t believe the club needs to headhunt a premiership-winning coach to replace Damien Hardwick – and hopes the coaching call will be made by season’s end.
While quick to point out the club won’t lock in an exact timeline for the call to be made, Gale said they’ll go through a “thorough” decision process.
“Look, I’m not committing to any timelines but we would ideally like to have something done before the end of the season,” he revealed on AFL 360 on Wednesday night.
“It allows you to go straight into that planning period post-grand final, list management etc etc.
“But gee, Brad Scott wasn’t appointed (by Essendon) until late in the year – I’m not saying we’re going to take that much time but the more work we put in to this front end, really defining the role the person we are looking for that the stronger the decision we’ll make.”
Gale laughed as he said he wouldn’t be advertising Richmond’s top job “on Seek” and moved to clarify comments he believed were taken out of context in late May that Richmond wanted to recruit an “untried coach” to replace Hardwick.
“A lot of people interpreted that comment as meaning we’re going to get an untried coach, a coach that hasn’t coached his own team – that’s not what I meant,” he explained.
“We want to find the next great coach.
“I think there really is something, because that’s the experience that I’ve lived, there is something ingrained together enduring the struggles. Really, those bonds of trust and strength get tighter and stronger. Sometimes your deepest and richest learnings is in those struggles and when you come the other side together.
“I really think there’s something in that. There’s something about growing.
“I was showing some stats a while ago that this notion that you’ve got to get a premiership coach – the stats would demonstrate that’s a myth.
“It’s happened twice in the AFL world since the 2000s – (Leigh) Matthews and (Mick) Malthouse.
“(Alastair) Clarkson no, (Mark) Thompson no, (Damien) Hardwick no, Chris Scott, no – there is something about the person with the capability, aptitude and growing with the group and a willingness to really back them and evolve through thick and thin.”
Gale said the benefit of Hardwick making his decision to leave so early in the season is that it gives the club time to really narrow down the type of candidate they are after.
“We’re making progress – we’ve given ourselves the time and space to put a lot of thought, time and effort into really defining the profile,” he said.
“Defining the key features of our football club and football program and the things we think are really important we need to preserve, the things we need to evolve and grow because that will inform the sort of coach we are looking for.
“Once we map that out and consult with different people and getting insights and reflections from outside football and inside, then we’ll go to the market.
“We’re not going to advertise on Seek. But the market is out there and we’ll begin a very thorough process.”
https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/not-advertising-on-seek-tigers-boss-rejects-great-coaching-myth-in-hunt-to-replace-dimma/news-story/35bc6ab2d6ddf7f1a9df1764026fe408
