We lost badly = lots about Richmond on last night's show.
* Matthew Lloyd said Richmond should offload 13 players. Players in yellow to be delisted.
Chaplin
Hunt
McBean
McKenzie
Townsend
Lennon
Griffiths
Elton
Maric
A.Moore
Morris
Conca
Vickery
* Caro spoke about the review being a major one.
- Hardwick will 3 assistant coaches will be moved on at the end of the season as they are out of contract.
- Recruiting has been woeful. Expect major changes there.
- Club recognises there's a cultural problem. The team continually fails in pressure games.
* Lloyd said the problems at Richmond are a mixture of both list management and coaching.
* Barrett said he would've moved Hardwick on and not re-signed him earlier in the year.
* Hutchy said he supported the re-signing at the time as you can always pay the coach out and cut your loses. It's no big deal. Caro added that Dimma is safe this year but if Richmond are in the same position next year then it's unlikely he will see out the final year of his contract.
* Hutchy added that he sees coaching (tactics & development) as a bigger problem than the list. They are too easy to play against. Opposition clubs believe Richmond spreads too wide and are easy to cut through and score against. They also see Richmond's gameplan as outdated. The gamestyle is unsustainable.Not all coaches are great tacticians, so they need to bring in a top tactician to help Dimma rebuild the gameplan. He added Richmond has the best top 6 of the teams outside the Eight so they don't need a total rebuild. Barrett chipped in that we fall away quickly after our best 6.
* Hutchy mentioned that Hardwick believed he had the best list in his time as coach, however they don't have the players. He asked Caro if Dimma should carry the can for that? Caro defended that statement as selling "hope" earlier in the year to instill belief in his players and that all coaches do it. She added that the more real (honest) Dimma was on display after the game. The one positive after a result like Friday night is that the pretence is over.
* Caro agreed development has been poor. Hutchy said he could think of 15 Bulldogs who have come on under Beveridge whereas you would struggle to come up with one at Punt Rd under Hardwick's reign. Perhaps Grimes and he's no star.
* Lloyd said Richmond are nowhere near a premiership. Their record said Richmond has 8 weeks to play their list. McBean should be given 4 weeks to show what he can deliver at AFL level; not just one week and dropped.
Most people that watch even just a few of our games can see our game plan is putrid. But Dimma is so stubborn he has refused to change much in the last 3 or 4 years.
The list is full of soft, slow, scared players that have either been drafted or traded for. So FJ can take his share of the blame for that but so can Dimma and the other list managers. But anyone that thinks DH doesn't get a very good say in who we trade for is delusional.
How can a player be on our list for 5 years and only have played 2 senior games. That would not happen at any other club. That's a long time to play 2's footy.
People talk about coaching and development as two different areas but don't they both come under coaching. Isn't it the coaching staffs job to develop players??
It all boils down to Dimma IMO not being a very good coach. Our players have gone backwards due to coaching, his development and his game plan.
It is still perplexing that the RFC gave him a 2 year extension with still a year to run on his current contract. If they simply had of waited until now they may have come up with a very different opinion on where our club is. All because we were too weak as a club to stand up to the media!
What is even more funny if what we are hearing is true is that the assistant coaches will probably be shown the door and the head coach will stay. That is too funny. Only at Richmond.
On another note they say the recruiting department could have "major changes" but what are they waiting for?? Don't waste another draft with the same team that has let us down for the last 6,7,8 years. Especially if we intend to make wholesale changes to our list. Move now!!
It the most important thing to do in the short term.
Anyway the next 8 weeks are very important and I hope that we are already invested in guys like Hurley. The only way out of this situation is if we throw money at some decent players and hope we draft well after trading our guys out. We need to finally grow some balls as a business and make decision for the now, that may not be too popular, and not try to think too far ahead.
I honestly believe if we can get Hurley (free in pick terms) a decent ruckman, a genuine mid (not really keen on Prestia) and say a Barlow from Freeo, and have a fit Yarran, McIntosh and maybe Lennon next year we can turn it around pretty quickly but DH would needs to change his style of coaching or get the arse. I'd definitely be more happy with the latter.
