The writing is on the wall now and I’m not prepared to support TW and the Club’s methods when they don’t deserve supporting. Instead, I’d rather challenge them.
People say the state of the list and all its inherited problems are an issue, or ‘the’ issue. You can accept that to some degree, but at times you just have to wonder if our results are simply the fault of the list, and I don’t reckon they are entirely.
If they are then what are we supposed to do until this perfect world arrives and our list is ideal? Maybe we should just go and tend the garden and forget about footy for a while, contemplate our navels, take up needle point, or just take a trip around the world? Unless you’re a glutton for punishment, why would you bother going to games if you already know to expect nothing much for some time to come yet? But people go anyway, just in hope, if nothing else.
And so they should have hope. After all, where’s the evidence to say that you can’t see any sort of results until the perfect world arrives? If the coach’s faith is placed where it should be, in his players, rather than in the system, then the human spirit is only limited by belief. At RFC they’ve mastered the art of illusion, and if they spent as much time on their players, as they do appeasing supporters, maybe we’d have something resembling a team, sooner rather than when the ‘premiership clock’ says we should have.
But the only people they are deluding now is themselves, because all this approach has served to do is eliminate the capacity for what the human spirit is capable of and replaced it with rhyme and reason. There is always an explanation, an excuse and a reason for any and all situations. No more does the human element play a part at RFC. It all comes down to logic, stats, facts, figures, reasons why it is not and why it is so.
For as long as their faith is placed in systems, processes and reason, rather than people, then the possibility for anything else to occur is nigh on impossible.
One then has to ask what is the purpose of professional sport, if it is not to inspire people; not with the expected, but with unexpected amazing feats, endeavours and human ingenuity and spirit? They are probably kidding themselves that they have people fooled, but they are the only real fools here, because they continue to fail, as a Club, to get the best out of players. And instead of directing their energies in the areas that need it most, they prefer to use their energies to deflect, divert attention and relieve the pressure whenever failure occurs.
What they say may make a whole lot of sense, but seriously, where is the balance and where in this oh so logical and reasoned place is the potential for anything other than what is logical to occur? What of the human element and the ability of humans to inspire through commitment, belief, determination, and shear will? Where is there room for any of that to occur, under the current circumstances and way of doing things?
Nowhere I say, but what choice is there other than to wait patiently until our ideal list materialises. Guess that is when we will start to see some coaching happen? Nope, nothing happening here for a while folks, probably 2011 I reckon.
Clearly, the faith at RFC is misplaced. It’s not where it should be. It’s in deflecting, diverting attention, systems, processes, the list; managing the list, getting the list to the right number of games and in the right age brackets, blah, blah, blah. We heard it the first time and understood, but when does achieving unexpected results, through coaching, come into things, like at other Clubs? They’re trying to tell us it’s not possible, even though it happens at other Clubs.
Added to that are the continual excuses and distancing from any responsibility when it comes to poor performances, which are a bit rich. The press conferences after games are a real eye opener, especially as TW seems to think that just by putting the onus on his players to perform that it will magically make them play better the next time or something. Got me beat how it hasn’t worked so far. There’s nothing like knowing your players and how to build their confidence and create a united team front. Nothing at all.
