Wallace needs room to grow
04 August 2004
Herald Sun
Mike Sheahan
WHEN Hawthorn and Richmond met in Round 6, they finished one point apart, the Tigers hanging on under fierce pressure.
In 2003, they enjoyed a win each, Richmond by 20 points early in the season, the Hawks by four in the final round.
Suffice to say, they aren't far apart in terms of talent, as their current positions, 15th (Richmond) and 16th, suggest.
Terry Wallace won't be deciding which coaching offer to accept solely on the strength of the player lists.
Nor should he. Neither list promises an immediate surge up the ladder. While Hawthorn may be more seasoned, Richmond seems more promising.
Yet, what Wallace requires most is political stability and the scope to restructure and run a football department his way.
He will have at least three years and probably four to rebuild whichever club that wins his commitment. Time to do it properly.
Provided he is guaranteed the proverbial blank piece of paper to plot the future. To bring in who he wants in the football department, to trade up as he sees fit, to decide the most appropriate use of early draft choices later this year.
Richmond has made the running for Wallace in recent weeks, yet Hawthorn can trump the Tigers at tomorrow's pivotal meeting with him.
The Hawks will be represented by the entire board of directors, conscious they have ground to retrieve.
They have room to move, and they realise they must be accommodating.
What if Wallace wants to recall his former football operations manager at the Western Bulldogs, Paul Armstrong? Or one of his assistants back then, Phil Maylin or David Noble? They must be flexible. Yet both clubs have experienced heads of football in John Hook (Hawthorn) and Greg Hutchison, and both have assistants with contracts taking in next season.
It will be delicate, but Wallace has the whip.
The Hawks have Richmond covered financially, as does any club that can manage to balance its books.
Hawthorn, though, has Dermott Brereton, and no football director has a higher, broader profile -- or more visible presence -- than Brereton, which might unsettle a prospective coach with a choice.
While new chief executive Jason Dunstall is believed to be keen on Wallace, Brereton is a strong admirer of Gary Ayres.
The two coaching prospects (three if you include Rodney Eade) and the two key officials all played in premiership teams together.
It is a complicated issue, one that will lead to a decision that will impact on many people. At two clubs.
If it comes down to playing strength, it simply has to be gut feel.
As the record says, there's nothing between them.
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