Will Eade get sacked in 2008?

[Dry Rot]

Eade had a rotten end to last season with 7 losses, made only worse with most of the coaching staff leaving and criticism by the President. After what happened and what was said, you might even think that Eade is lucky to have 2 years of his contract left.

I was a strong advocate of appointing him and I'm not advocating sacking him now. However, recent events, what has been said and the appointment of Fantasia suggests to me he may be on thin ice and the club may have certain expectations or results in mind for him to continue in 2009, higher than we would have.

Thoughts?

[LostDoggy]

I dont think he will be sacked and given the army of development coaches, coaches and now a footy manager to do all the administration work he has more than enough support to do the job. He wouldnt want to get a few 60 point plus beatings early on in the season though. More than most years he needs this team ready to go from round one. There is no doubt that some supporters will hold out on buying their memberships until they see if the team regains that competitive edge it lost in 2007.

[hujsh]

Eade is safe for his two year baring something extraordinary. For us to get rid of him there will need to be a coach who really knows what to do availabe because we should have a more than competant list by then with few players 30+

[Dry Rot]

Will luck play a role? We've had a rotten injury run in the last few seasons which must affect the team's performance.

Dunno whether injuries will be an acceptable excuse in the club's eyes if we have another ordinary season.

[Scorlibo]

In 2005 and 2006 it seemed to me as though Eade had a plan A game which was working very well, but once other teams started to adapt (and once we started to get crucial players injured) we got to see Eade's plan B, which I preusmed would be rather good considering the versatility of our list, and yet we continued to get slaughtered because plan A was a slightly altered plan B. He changed the style and positioning very little. Moving Murphy to the backline gave pleasing results and so did getting Skip into the side, but for me, he just didn't do enough.

Hopefully over the summer, Eade sits down and has a think about what to do in various cicumstances, and then consult necessary players on possible positional changes. If Eade is still unable to change the outcome of games by the end of 2008 then we may well need a new coach.

All this being said, it ultimately comes down to the players' performance, and their performance in the last seven or so games of last year lacked skill, fitness and enthusiasm.

[LostDoggy]

Will luck play a role? We've had a rotten injury run in the last few seasons which must affect the team's performance.

Dunno whether injuries will be an acceptable excuse in the club's eyes if we have another ordinary season.

Was our injuries really that bad? I cant see that this is a plausible excuse really. We had 9 wins and 6 losses but it seems we searched for the easy excuse when the wheels fell off.
We need to be better than that.

[LostDoggy]

All this being said, it ultimately comes down to the players' performance, and their performance in the last seven or so games of last year lacked skill, fitness and enthusiasm.
I agree with everything else you said but I dont think the results over the last 7 weeks is just down on the players. The coach wasnt anywhere near the top of his game either.

[Dry Rot]

Was our injuries really that bad? I cant see that this is a plausible excuse really. We had 9 wins and 6 losses but it seems we searched for the easy excuse when the wheels fell off.
We need to be better than that.

I agree it was a factor but I don't think it's the main reason. And given what Smorgon said, I don't think he thinks so either. Add in the coaching staff leaving and rumours I've read elsewhere about bullying etc and it doesn't sound like a happy little ship to me.

[LostDoggy]

Was our injuries really that bad? I cant see that this is a plausible excuse really. We had 9 wins and 6 losses but it seems we searched for the easy excuse when the wheels fell off.
We need to be better than that.

Injuries are a non issue, they should never be used as an excuse. That is a sign of weakness and you are right we do need to be better than that. Switched on they weren't for those remaining 7 weeks. A lot of soul searching took place with the coach bearing the brunt of it both publicly and moreso "inhouse" he is aware that he will be closely monitored again there are no excuses for our coach not to deliver the goods now seeing as he has been relieved of quite a lot of his additional duties that he took on.

He is safe for the time being.

[Dry Rot]

Injuries are a non issue, they should never be used as an excuse. That is a sign of weakness and you are right we do need to be better than that.

Agreed - there was a lot more to our last third of the season than just that.


Switched on they weren't for those remaining 7 weeks. A lot of soul searching took place with the coach bearing the brunt of it both publicly and moreso "inhouse" he is aware that he will be closely monitored again there are no excuses for our coach not to deliver the goods now seeing as he has been relieved of quite a lot of his additional duties that he took on.


Agreed, so it will get interesting if we don't have a good season. BTW I'd expect us to have a good season, but there's nowhere to hide for Eade if we don't.

Will be interesting to see how he and Fantasia work out.

[wimberga]

Eade is a coach, not a pyschiatrist. Scrutiny for him stems from the last seven games. In these games, Eade had coached and instructed the players to perform to his strategy, but there own diminishing lack of confidence repudiated a beautiful gameplan. The question is, how much responsibility falls on Eade to make a strategy the team can carry out, and/or how much responsibility falls on the players to adopt what is instructed?

[LostDoggy]

Bottom line...I don't think our club is financially in a position to sack the coach...well not until half way through 2009 if performances fall away.

[FrediKanoute]

Firstly I think Eade is sfe in 2008, unless the year is a disaster and by that I mean we lose out first 5 games and are effectively "rebuilding" for 2009.

I think what many people forget about 2007 was that we went into the year with injuries to a number of key players who were a big part of our game plan:

1. Darcy - rightly or wrongly despite not playing for 2 years Eade and the coaching stafff had him as a central part of the ruck forward structure. Recovering from 2 years out with a knee injury it was just unrealistic;
2. Murphy - the mobile CHF and forward playmaker was always going to take a few rounds to find his feet as well as struggle with form and fitness after coming back from a knee;
3. Hahn - ditto Murphy
4. Akermanis - missed most of 2006 because of a falling out with brisbane Lions and whilst not injured from a conditioning perspective he was always going to be underdone
5. Walsh - ineffective, but again a player "carried" through the 2006/7 season. Who knows weather a fit Walsh may have been able to alleviate the issues with Darcy
6. Grant - whilst the great man's pace may have waned as he aged his skill never left him and his ability to read the game and position himself and bring others into the game was missed.
7. Montgomery - like Grant another hard at it experienced player who we really missed and was a key part of out 2006 success.
8. Cooney - missed most of the preseason with OP so started the year well behind the 8-ball and in the frenetic pace and constant running of the AFL midfield he as just found out.
9. Griffin - an untimely pre-season injury meant that he lost much of his conditioning and though he managed to return for the start of the year he was never 100% fit.

Now whilst some may point to the fact that we were 9 and 6 at round 15 and we managed to lose the next 7 games andget flogged, what many forget is that its often easier to win games earlier in the season because your squad is not carrying those little niggly injuries. Add to that losing Griffin, West and Gilbee and it essentially tipped the scales. That is not to say that there weren't other factors but to say injuries are not an excuse is underplaying the extent of the injuries the Doggies have had to deal with and the hangover effect that they have had.

[LostDoggy]

Bottom line...I don't think our club is financially in a position to sack the coach...well not until half way through 2009 if performances fall away.
It begs the question if we were in a strong financial position like the Crows would a few comprehensive beatings again in 2008 like we finished off 2007 with would be tolerated?

[Bulldog4life]

An important injury too was that of Daniel Cross.

[Dry Rot]

An important injury too was that of Daniel Cross.

True, but IMHO injuries alone don't explain those last 7 games.

[LostDoggy]

Why is it always the coaches fault? Surely the burden should be solely on the playing group that play on the weekend. Theres only so much a coach can do and thens its up to the players to adapt. I think coaches are unfairly scrutinised by the media and they have alot to say about about weather coaches stay or go. Pagan is a prime example of this, and the way the media force him out.

Also just on Griffen. He was having a near perfect pre season it seemed until the last 3 or 4 weeks. What happened to him?

[Topdog]

I agree with everything else you said but I dont think the results over the last 7 weeks is just down on the players. The coach wasnt anywhere near the top of his game either.

Tend to agree but the players were really bad in hte end there. Eade played a lot of young guys in those last 7 weeks. It almost seemed like we had given up.

[Sockeye Salmon]

Why is it always the coaches fault? Surely the burden should be solely on the playing group that play on the weekend. Theres only so much a coach can do and thens its up to the players to adapt. I think coaches are unfairly scrutinised by the media and they have alot to say about about weather coaches stay or go. Pagan is a prime example of this, and the way the media force him out.

Also just on Griffen. He was having a near perfect pre season it seemed until the last 3 or 4 weeks. What happened to him?

A lot of it is about the coaches relationship with the media.

If the coach makes the reporters job easy by giving them interviews or a decent quote now and again, the media will go easy on him (Sheedy, Wallace, Daniher), if the coach is a miserable prick who gives them nothing, the media will go after him first chance they get (hello Denis Pagan).

Eade is a superstar who I hope stays for another decade (of course the only way a coach can last that long is if they win a couple of premierships :D)

[Dry Rot]

Eade is a superstar

Dunno whether our president, Cam Rose or the departed coaching staff would have that view.

[aker39]

Dunno whether our president, Cam Rose or the departed coaching staff would have that view.

or Dry Rot, by the look of things.

[Sockeye Salmon]

or Dry Rot, by the look of things.

Dry Rot has been a massive Eade supporter up until now :confused:

[The Underdog]

Dunno whether our president, Cam Rose or the departed coaching staff would have that view.

Cam Rose now has another administrator to circuit break. As long as the team performs on the field, Cam only needs to take care of the off field side of things.

As for the departed coaches they're probably too busy counting their extra money or being glad they got out while it was still their choice. Not saying we didn't lose some good people but sometimes change can be good too.

[Scorlibo]

I agree with everything else you said but I dont think the results over the last 7 weeks is just down on the players. The coach wasnt anywhere near the top of his game either.

Yes, sorry, ultimately is probably not the right word. I'm just trying to say that we can't shift all the blame onto Eade, because the players no doubt played a big part in losing those games aswell, they just all looked as though they had been shot in the leg after half time, their fitness wasn't up to scratch and so their skills and hunger followed.

[Dry Rot]

Dry Rot has been a massive Eade supporter up until now :confused:

After the post season stuff, you could say in stockbroker's terms I've gone from a strong buy to a hold, not a sell. The thread title asks "Will" not "should".

I like Eade and I hope for a variety of obvious reasons that we make top 6 next season. But I think it's also valid to wonder what target the club has in mind after the last 7 games and the post season stuff.

[rgcarter@net-tech.co]

I like the summary and would like to include two points.
a. Our centre bounce power was at best insipid as the opposition regularly and consistently took the ball away and put a great deal of pressure on a young and to a degree average backline.
b. Our game plan was well understood by the opposition and we suffered at the rebound that other teams put up coupled with opposition backlines isolating our few goal kickers.
A drop in confidence caused slower movement fwd and then a shut down of small fwds happened.
cheers