If you need MORE than one excuse, well, you have NO EXCUSE!

[mjp]

The more I read about the Dunkley "stuff" the more this 'life lesson' one of my old bosses used to harp on keeps entering my brain.

He used to say that anytime you had to come up with more than ONE reason for doing something (or, more likely in our old job NOT doing something), well, that meant you really didn't have a reason at all. For example, you couldn't come in to support the change window on a Saturday because it was your kid's birthday is a good reason...but if you added to that something about what was happening Sunday morning then you were a BS artist.

If the story was:

"I'm sick of playing in the ruck" - I would believe it.

If it was:

"I want to play at a club where I am a first choice mid" - I would believe it.

If it was:

"I'm sick of these guys getting on it/being unprofessional" - I would believe it.

If it was:

"I just dont get on with the coach anymore" - I would believe it.

If it was:

"Hell - that's a BIG pay rise...what's a guy to do" - I would believe it.

When Gryphon left it was all about a new start. When Ward left it was all about $. Both players were clear and honest with what they said. We didn't like it but there was no confusion.

I have been thinking all along there is something to the reports about JD...but the addition of the culture elements today is for me the last straw. I'm calling BS. If you need 5 reasons then you don't have ANY reasons. A case is being built as to why he should leave but the foundations are made out of paper mache. It's a nice story...but enough is enough now.

People do thing because 'SOMETHING' is so important to them they NEED to do it. 5x half reasons don't = 1 good one...they actually equal nothing at all.

[Ghost Dog]

Well maybe he is not confident enough to admit it's about money.
Some people get weird about money. This excuse, that excuse.


You just inspired me MJP. Good insight and life lesson.
I had a student today who gave me several excuses why his homework was late.
I messaged him just now.

[Happy Days]

We’re still in the IG bio, I’m telling you if I know anything about Dunks then there is nothing to worry about until we aren’t.

[Ghost Dog]

I hope so, I really like him as a player. He's a ball magnet and love his goal celebrations.

[azabob]

In my experience you typically have one reason and that is the core reason you start looking. Then you may feel a tinge of guilt and you start looking for other reasons to justify your decision to others but more so for yourself.

[ledge]

But the problem is it’s all media saying it , I would love him to come out and say he loves the club and isn’t going anywhere .
The other point about players not pulling their weight is a direct go at his best mate Bontempellis leadership and I doubt he would do that to a close mate.
The article he wrote about Beverage also goes against that rumour.
Doesn’t make sense.

[jeemak]

But the problem is it’s all media saying it , I would love him to come out and say he loves the club and isn’t going anywhere .
The other point about players not pulling their weight is a direct go at his best mate Bontempellis leadership and I doubt he would do that to a close mate.
The article he wrote about Beverage also goes against that rumour.
Doesn’t make sense.

The media is saying exactly what MJP is saying, i.e. everything but the absolute truth of it. It's all about the money.

[Bulldog4life]

Well maybe he is not confident enough to admit it's about money.
Some people get weird about money. This excuse, that excuse.


You just inspired me MJP. Good insight and life lesson.
I had a student today who gave me several excuses why his homework was late.
I messaged him just now.

His dog and cat ate his homework?

[Go_Dogs]

Yes, lots of people reaching for an underlying truth - reason. It’s not there yet.

Who knows if it’s there in reality, all camps are keeping this very close at the moment (well, at least us and Josh) which is as good a sign as any. If there was more truth to it, surely the leaks would be getting louder and more certain.

It’s such a stupid time of year. The players must sit back with big smiles on their faces 90% of what gets talked about.

[The Pie Man]

Don’t really like Goddard much, but I bought what he said re: the chronology of this story.

I can imagine...

Other club : we really rate you as an inside mid that we have a need for, would you be interested in moving?

Player : well....I’d love to be playing more midfield time where I am, but that’s not enough of a reason to leave.

Other club : well, you’d be our No.1 inside mid, and look at all this money / big crowds etc ...


On motivation - my personal experience is reflected in studies around reasons for leaving jobs - and Jordan Roughead can likely relate. I left the leader. I’ve enjoyed / been good at the mechanics of roles I’ve had, but I’ve always left when I didn’t like my boss. I’m not on my Pat Malone

[azabob]

Don’t really like Goddard much, but I bought what he said re: the chronology of this story.

I can imagine...

Other club : we really rate you as an inside mid that we have a need for, would you be interested in moving?

Player : well....I’d love to be playing more midfield time where I am, but that’s not enough of a reason to leave.

Other club : well, you’d be our No.1 inside mid, and look at all this money / big crowds etc ...


On motivation - my personal experience is reflected in studies around reasons for leaving jobs - and Jordan Roughead can likely relate. I left the leader. I’ve enjoyed / been good at the mechanics of roles I’ve had, but I’ve always left when I didn’t like my boss. I’m not on my Pat Malone

Pie Man you left out a step. The first step.

Essendon searching the internet for footy threads and stumbled across Jeemaks - Trade Dunkley thread from back in August.

[KT31]

His dog and cat ate his homework?

One of the best excuses I heard, young bloke I trained at cricket and had finished all his homework.
Whilst at training his Dad was looking after his baby brother and whilst the bubs was sitting in the highchair with no nappy he exploded from the bottom end.
The Dad panicked as there was a stinking mess everywhere and reached for the nearest thing he could to clean the mess up, unfortunately it was the poor young blokes homework.
Poor young bloke copped it for the remainder of the season
- you would've got shite marks anyway.
- you stink at maths
-This from the teacher, "the mess would have been neater than what you normally turn in"
etc.:D:D

[Twodogs]

What's a change window and why does Saturday make a difference?

I agree with what you say. If someone rings in sick and says "I can't come in, i've got a cold" then you believe them. You write it up on the board at the reception desk and get on with the day. If they ring in and say "I can't come in today I've got a cold and the cat died and Nana got engaged again and my car broke down and one of my kids was kidnapped by Mexican bandits" and further overegg the pudding then you start adding quotation marks up on the board and you make damn sure it stays on the board with the skeptical looking quotation marks until they eventually make their way into work again.

It's like taking 3 crap players (Cowton, Moylan and Williams) for one champion player (Dempsey) in a trade. No amount of list cloggers make up for that one really good player.

[DOG GOD]

My opinion...

I think he wants to go and I think he want to go 100% for the money...at that’s his choice. Others would do it to.

And the reason NO ONE at the club or Dunkley has commented is because I think both player and club believe that a deal will NOT be done. Dunkley won’t publicly announce anything UNTIL that trade is committed 100%.

With all the reasons about why he wants out (what we are hearing), is right up there with why Coll want Treloar gone. EXCUSES. That’s all it is.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

I get all this,
but if this has been an issue Dunkley has raised before, and as a leader has also tried to address ...and a year after signing a contract extension, finds his side dumped out of the finals, and still has concerns about players not responding.......
I can see how when Essendon come a courting, and sticks a huge contract under his nose, he goes, yep I'm listening.

Quite frankly if the club doesn't come out and address this rumour very quickly.... then I can see a whole bunch of clubs sharpening their knives in preparation for a similar offer to a disgruntled Bontempelli in a years time.

[Rocket Science]

If culture and standards are the issue it's curious you'd seek the embrace of a club that's spent most of its off-season publicly hand-wringing about how shit its culture and standards have been.

[bornadog]

My opinion...

I think he wants to go and I think he want to go 100% for the money...at that’s his choice. Others would do it to.

And the reason NO ONE at the club or Dunkley has commented is because I think both player and club believe that a deal will NOT be done. Dunkley won’t publicly announce anything UNTIL that trade is committed 100%.

With all the reasons about why he wants out (what we are hearing), is right up there with why Coll want Treloar gone. EXCUSES. That’s all it is.

I see it the same way as well.

What I would like the club to do is say to Dunkley, you are a wanted player, you have two years left on your contract, end of story.

A want the message to go out to all clubs and all our contracted players. if we don't do this what is stopping another club with salary cap space putting forward a big contract in front of Smith, Naughton, or any young gun.

[Yankee Hotel Foxtrot]

If culture and standards are the issue it's curious you'd seek the embrace of a club that's spent most of its off-season publicly hand-wringing about how shit its culture and standards have been.

But I can also see a sales pitch that says we're cleaning house now. We've reviewed and we know where things are rotten. We've got a core of guys and with you on board we are going to turn this ship around.

I mean we managed to sell our club to Tom Boyd whilst at the same time appearing to all and sundry to be a well lit dumpster fire.

[Rocket Science]

But I can also see a sales pitch that says we're cleaning house now. We've reviewed and we know where things are rotten. We've got a core of guys and with you on board we are going to turn this ship around.

I mean we managed to sell our club to Tom Boyd whilst at the same time appearing to all and sundry to be a well lit dumpster fire.

Sure, being enlisted as an agent of change must hold a certain appeal.

Unless you're an Indigenous player being courted by us of course.

[DOG GOD]

I see it the same way as well.

What I would like the club to do is say to Dunkley, you are a wanted player, you have two years left on your contract, end of story.

A want the message to go out to all clubs and all our contracted players. if we don't do this what is stopping another club with salary cap space putting forward a big contract in front of Smith, Naughton, or any young gun.

Exactly. If we WANT to be a powerhouse club, we have to ACT like a powerhouse club. Standing our ground, staying strong, and showing others we are no pushovers, is something we HAVE to do. It’s a non negotiable as far as I’m concerned. If Naughton can make it as a forward, watch WC and Freo throw $900k at him in a few years.

If Power and the club can’t do this, then I expect us to bend over to dodo in the last hour and give Dunkley to Essendon for pick 7.

[The bulldog tragician]

Going back to mjp’s original thoughts, what worries me is that all those extra “excuses” aren’t being converted into reasons to stay. If you were offered a heap of money BUT on the other hand could say:

we’ve got a great culture and a bunch of blokes dedicated to success, I don’t want to leave something precious..

I love Bevo and even when he does weird sh*t like play me in the ruck I understand and respect his reasons...

I want to play mid more often and can talk this thru with the coaching staff and feel confident next year will be different..

If instead all of these are not the case and can’t override an outlandish offer, then we have a problem bigger than the “players are greedy, who could resist that kind of money” narrative.

And what worries me more, aren’t there echoes of the Jordan Roughead playbook? Another “great bloke.” Disaffection, disillusionment, frustration with what his role was. Sounds familiar doesn’t it ... but the crap-load of money factor wasn’t even there. Two years from a flag, still capable of good footy, and he said he would have retired if we didn’t let him go.

Historically we were used to players leaving us, for finals, for success, for money, because we were a small fish, didn’t have great facilities, mightn’t survive the next season. I thought our flag transformed all that, yet 4 years on, here we are again.

[GVGjr]

I think all reasons being offered are genuine but the catalyst is the vastly bigger money early
I certainly wouldn't discount the reduction of time in the midfield as a contributing factor though

[bornadog]

Historically we were used to players leaving us, for finals, for success, for money, because we were a small fish, didn’t have great facilities, mightn’t survive the next season. I thought our flag transformed all that, yet 4 years on, here we are again.

All clubs lose players every year for a variety of reasons. Have a look at the Hawks losing Buddy in the middle of the three peat.

[Bulldog4life]

What's a change window and why does Saturday make a difference?

I agree with what you say. If someone rings in sick and says "I can't come in, i've got a cold" then you believe them. You write it up on the board at the reception desk and get on with the day. If they ring in and say "I can't come in today I've got a cold and the cat died and Nana got engaged again and my car broke down and one of my kids was kidnapped by Mexican bandits" and further overegg the pudding then you start adding quotation marks up on the board and you make damn sure it stays on the board with the skeptical looking quotation marks until they eventually make their way into work again.

It's like taking 3 crap players (Cowton, Moylan and Williams) for one champion player (Dempsey) in a trade. No amount of list cloggers make up for that one really good player.

Crazy Horse. Used to run around in circles.

[azabob]

Crazy Horse. Used to run around in circles.

Where’s Neil Young?

[Ghost Dog]

If culture and standards are the issue it's curious you'd seek the embrace of a club that's spent most of its off-season publicly hand-wringing about how shit its culture and standards have been.

Hird's father wants a new inquiry into the sad saga. Just goes on forever.

[boydogs]

There's always a tipping point, I don't agree with the one reason logic

You might not go to the footy by yourself, you might not catch up with a mate outside the footy, but you might go to the footy with your mate

[Topdog]

There's always a tipping point, I don't agree with the one reason logic

You might not go to the footy by yourself, you might not catch up with a mate outside the footy, but you might go to the footy with your mate

That's a reason to do something as opposed to an excuse to not do something.

[mjp]

That's a reason to do something as opposed to an excuse to not do something.

Precisely.

[Mofra]

All clubs lose players every year for a variety of reasons. Have a look at the Hawks losing Buddy in the middle of the three peat.
Buddy was OOC and a free agent.
I think players under contract and players out of contract need to be considered separately.

I'm very much in the 'keep Dunkley and avoid Treloar' camp but I would be comfortable if we traded Dunkley for ridiculous overs, if only because I have faith that Rhylee West will develop if given more opportunity. I'd be more comfortable if we had a fit Toby McLean next year.