Rocket Man

[Bumper Bulldogs]

With the season around the corner I would be keen to hear the thoughts on where we are at coaching wise at the Bulldogs.

We have a fantastic list and have recruited well over the last few years to see us in a strong position. We have new facilities, new fitness personal, New team manager, new coaching support staff and a senior coach that is out of contract at the end of the year.

Are the board happy with Rocket?

Is he the bloke to take us all the way?

Has he done enough in the time he has had?

With 8 coaches out of contract this year should we shop around?

If Rocket is the man when do we sign him up?

[The Coon Dog]

Hard to know how footy boards think, but I reckon they would have to be pleased with Rocket. I guess though boards are influenced by results so it's a matter of seeing how we go this season before we get a feel for the boards position.

I reckon he's the bloke to take us all the way for sure. A few of us met with Rocket in December 2007 & he said that people don't realise how close to a Premiership this club is. We'd just come off a season where the finish was awful & he had this belief & those that were there looked at one another, then the hair rose on the back of our necks.

You would only 'shop around' for a new coach if you came to a conclusion that the existing one is not in the long term thoughts. If any club was to start that process it would be determined by results, which for some clubs will be apparent much earlier than others. I don't see us looking for a new coach .

Sign him up now, though I guess there will be some who might ask why the urgency & he may get 'too comfortable' if he's not under the sort of pressure to perform that he might be if he was coaching for his career. A non issue in my view; he's too professional to worry about that. Leaving it too long may alert other clubs & that's not an outcome I'd be happy with.

I wouldn't say we've recruited well over recent years, only for the fact we have traded on many of the first rounders we selected in Penny, McMahon, Alvey, Power & Ray & haven't got the power forward we've been dreaming about.

Anyhow, what's your view BB? Great thread by the way.

[BulldogBelle]

BB,

Good timing starting this thread - An article has just come out by Caroline Wilson discussing 'coaches seeking early notice" before sackings and here is a snippet of the article regarding Eade...

The Bulldogs have said they will re-open negotiations with Eade in the coming months.

I have placed the article in it's entirety on the Dogs Day Board.

[Bulldog Revolution]

BB,

Good timing starting this thread - An article has just come out by Caroline Wilson discussing 'coaches seeking early notice" before sackings and here is a snippet of the article regarding Eade...

The Bulldogs have said they will re-open negotiations with Eade in the coming months.

I have placed the article in it's entirety on the Dogs Day Board.

I think its interesting to contrast that development with the article on Bomber Thompson

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,25178302-19742,00.html

I just hope that Eade and his coaching staff are spending enough time 1 on 1 with the players

[bornadog]

I think this year is a real test for Eade and the coaching staff. We have just come off a pretty good season and missed out on a place in the Grand Final by not too much. We have the reigning Brownlow medalist, a good mix of old and young players and some great future recruits. I think the Board should expect no less than a top four finish and a Grand Final birth.

In regards to negotiations with Eade, I would wait till at least half way in the year to see how things are going. there is plenty of time yet.

[GVGjr]

I think this year is a real test for Eade and the coaching staff. We have just come off a pretty good season and missed out on a place in the Grand Final by not too much. We have the reigning Brownlow medalist, a good mix of old and young players and some great future recruits. I think the Board should expect no less than a top four finish and a Grand Final birth.

In regards to negotiations with Eade, I would wait till at least half way in the year to see how things are going. there is plenty of time yet.

I suppose one other thing to add is that everything over the summer has been focused just on the Home and Away season so the performance there will be critical. Top 4 should be the aim but I wouldn't discount a top 6 season as a bad one either.

[Mantis]

I suppose one other thing to add is that everything over the summer has been focused just on the Home and Away season so the performance there will be critical. Top 4 should be the aim but I wouldn't discount a top 6 season as a bad one either.

Agree with that, but with the competition getting closer we would need a good run with injuries to be able to achieve this result, especially with our 'better' players.

[GVGjr]

Agree with that, but with the competition getting closer we would need a good run with injuries to be able to achieve this result, especially with our 'better' players.

What would you consider a pass then?

In my opinion we need the seasons goals to be set high because of a few things:

1) We didn't trade because our list was rated as good enough.
2) We didn't drop off a few more players and look at drafting more players indicating we are in a window of opportunity.
3) We didn't in anyway compromise the Home and Away season focus with the NAB cup.

We have put a few eggs in one basket and we simply can't accept a big drop off. A good run with injuries is just about implied to have the ultimate success but we should still be able to put in a top 6 performance if last seasons results weren't in some way inflated.

[LostDoggy]

In my mind Rocket has done more than enough to justify a long, long stint at the club - success comes with stability, and he's proven that he's one of the better coaches going around, no point rocking the organisation just for the sake of it. Not many better candidates out there - who would we replace Rocket with? (Luring Lethal out of retirement would be the only situation I would be interested in...)

However, I have a question turns the situation on its head: if we are too coy about the whole thing, like I said, Rocket is already recognised as one of the best going around.. what if a craftier, richer club comes along and poaches him while we twiddle our thumbs? It would be a very smart play from a middle of the road club with shaky coaching incumbents, like a Richmond or an Essendon.

I know we're desperate for the ultimate success, but instability will just ensure more years in the wilderness, not less.

[GVGjr]

In my mind Rocket has done more than enough to justify a long, long stint at the club - success comes with stability, and he's proven that he's one of the better coaches going around, no point rocking the organisation just for the sake of it. Not many better candidates out there - who would we replace Rocket with? (Luring Lethal out of retirement would be the only situation I would be interested in...)

However, I have a question turns the situation on its head: if we are too coy about the whole thing, like I said, Rocket is already recognised as one of the best going around.. what if a craftier, richer club comes along and poaches him while we twiddle our thumbs? It would be a very smart play from a middle of the road club with shaky coaching incumbents, like a Richmond or an Essendon.

I know we're desperate for the ultimate success, but instability will just ensure more years in the wilderness, not less.

I agree that he has plenty of credits in the bank and has done a wonderful job but it would be a brave decision to green light a contract extension if we were to miss the 8. It's a harsh reality of AFL that most coaches can't get away from poor results in contract seasons.

The question of possible replacements is a good one however, way too premature at this stage. There has been nothing of any substance to suggest a major form slump for the side.

[Mantis]

What would you consider a pass then?

In my opinion we need the seasons goals to be set high because of a few things:

1) We didn't trade because our list was rated as good enough.
2) We didn't drop off a few more players and look at drafting more players indicating we are in a window of opportunity.
3) We didn't in anyway compromise the Home and Away season focus with the NAB cup.

We have put a few eggs in one basket and we simply can't accept a big drop off. A good run with injuries is just about implied to have the ultimate success but we should still be able to put in a top 6 performance if last seasons results weren't in some way inflated.

I think we should be looking to atleast maintain our position in the competition which would equate to another top 4 finish and/or another PF berth.

[azabob]

In my mind Rocket has done more than enough to justify a long, long stint at the club - success comes with stability, and he's proven that he's one of the better coaches going around, no point rocking the organisation just for the sake of it. Not many better candidates out there - who would we replace Rocket with? (Luring Lethal out of retirement would be the only situation I would be interested in...)

However, I have a question turns the situation on its head: if we are too coy about the whole thing, like I said, Rocket is already recognised as one of the best going around.. what if a craftier, richer club comes along and poaches him while we twiddle our thumbs? It would be a very smart play from a middle of the road club with shaky coaching incumbents, like a Richmond or an Essendon.
I know we're desperate for the ultimate success, but instability will just ensure more years in the wilderness, not less.

Totally agree, you need stability at the top.

I dont think Eade will be poached, and if he truely believes what he is saying we are close to a GF win why would he leave?
Having said all that if 2009 turns out to be a 2007 with no injuries, Im not sure we should be looking at the coach, we should look at the players.

[Bulldog Revolution]

1) We didn't trade because our list was rated as good enough.
2) We didn't drop off a few more players and look at drafting more players indicating we are in a window of opportunity.
3) We didn't in anyway compromise the Home and Away season focus with the NAB cup.


These are some pretty compelling reasons to set the bar high

I definitely thought we would trim further than we did and draft more players

I'm pleased we haven't compromised our H&A season, but its now up the group to perform

That said I'm really on the fence as to how we will perform. Having had Cooney, Murphy and Williams seemingly injured all pre-season hasn't helped my optimism. And the worry about how our forward line will hold up/score against this new cluster styled game is a riddle that still needs to be unravelled.

[LostDoggy]

I wouldn't say we've recruited well over recent years, only for the fact we have traded on many of the first rounders we selected in Penny, McMahon, Alvey, Power & Ray & haven't got the power forward we've been dreaming about.



Mc Mahon, Power and Ray are all likely to be 200 game (minimum) players.

Sometime after recruiting them, we decided they didn't fit into our game plan but they still had currency at the trading table after 100 or so games with us.

I would call that successful recruiting.

However, I agree on the other two, Penny was flat out spelling cat and Alvey was so good

Having said that I believe our recruiting over the years has been sound and stands up against any other club

[ledge]

I think our biggest problem has been finding a top class marking forward, i dont think i would blame the coach, they are hard to find, i do believe we have some coming through but they need to come through while the big names we have in the middle are still at their best.

Eade i am very happy with and as pointed out if you are going to release a coach you have to have a better one to sign up, i dont see much out there, maybe Lethal but is he still interested and does he fit into what the club wants?

[Go_Dogs]

I tend to think that Rocket has done a pretty good job. He inherited a list that needed a bit of an overhaul and has got a lot of development out of guys that didn't seem to be going places prior to his arrival.

He really needs to make sure that this is a successful year though, anything like the 2007 disaster should not be tolerated.

I'm confident that he's capable of winning us a flag in the next few years.



For interests sake, do any of the other coaches going around appeal?

[LostDoggy]

I think our biggest problem has been finding a top class marking forward, i dont think i would blame the coach


You know how you play a sports video game like NBA Live and you're hiring a recruting manager and each manager has individual strengths and weaknesses? I'd say Clayton's weakness should he appear on a video game would be key position players (pretty obvious).

As for Eade I can't see him moving anywhere other than Tasmania. If we were to look somewhere else I think we'd look at Chris Bond or Leon Cameron. Both of them seem to be coaches in the making and they both have been at the Bulldogs/still at the Bulldogs so it wouldn't be such a big deal.

[GVGjr]

I tend to think that Rocket has done a pretty good job. He inherited a list that needed a bit of an overhaul and has got a lot of development out of guys that didn't seem to be going places prior to his arrival.

He really needs to make sure that this is a successful year though, anything like the 2007 disaster should not be tolerated.

I'm confident that he's capable of winning us a flag in the next few years.

For interests sake, do any of the other coaches going around appeal?

Has he really overhauled the list? I tend to think he has been cautious with the list management.

As for other coaches, not that many that are coming out of contract would interest other than Williams and of course there is always the chance that Matthews could be swayed to get back into coaching.

I'm pretty happy with Eade at the helm though but he still needs to consolidate and improve on last seasons progress.

[azabob]

Has he really overhauled the list? I tend to think he has been cautious with the list management.

As for other coaches, not that many that are coming out of contract would interest other than Williams and of course there is always the chance that Matthews could be swayed to get back into coaching.

I'm pretty happy with Eade at the helm though but he still needs to consolidate and improve on last seasons progress.

I think he has done a good job with the list. We only have one or two players that I would class as dead wood. And both of them could play 10+ senior games this year as they can fill a need those being Eagleton and Wight. He has moved on players or let players go that will not win us a flag such as Ray, Power, McMahon and then there are others who were just fringe players.
What else do you think he should've done with our list?
If talking coaches why wouldn't you look at Malthouse or Buckley?

[GVGjr]

I think he has done a good job with the list. We only have one or two players that I would class as dead wood. And both of them could play 10+ senior games this year as they can fill a need those being Eagleton and Wight. He has moved on players or let players go that will not win us a flag such as Ray, Power, McMahon and then there are others who were just fringe players.
What else do you think he should've done with our list?
If talking coaches why wouldn't you look at Malthouse or Buckley?

My guess is that he could have been a lot more active, yes he has moved on some players but Ray, Power and McMahon forced his hand for trades rather than the other way around.
We initially tried hard to keep Ray last year.
On top of that we took the easy road by adding experienced players with not long use-by dates like Hudson, Akermanis and Welsh.

Malthouse would be an interesting one but I'm not so sure about Buckley. I'm always skeptical on coaching appointments for star players that haven't done their apprenticeship.

[lemmon]

Very happy with Eade, has really grown with this list and has stamped his own authority and flavour on it. It really is no longer inherited but is his baby and i think thats important with a senior coach. In saying that though a new contract is still fairly results driven with 07 still fairly fresh. If he did have a poor year there would be a few options for the club with guys like the highly rated Damien Hardwick, Nathan Buckley, Matthews (if he wanted another go) and Mark Williams (probably wants to coach a more high profile club) potentially coming back to Melbourne.

[bornadog]

Malthouse would be an interesting one but I'm not so sure about Buckley. I'm always skeptical on coaching appointments for star players that haven't done their apprenticeship.

Would Malthouse really contemplate a home coming?:D

[Bumper Bulldogs]

[QUOTE=The Coon Dog;73474]
I reckon he's the bloke to take us all the way for sure.

Sign him up now, though I guess there will be some who might ask why the urgency & he may get 'too comfortable' if he's not under the sort of pressure to perform that he might be if he was coaching for his career.

I wouldn't say we've recruited well over recent years, only for the fact we have traded on many of the first rounders we selected in Penny, McMahon, Alvey, Power & Ray & haven't got the power forward we've been dreaming about.

1. I fully support Rocket as I would hate to become a club like the Saints that turn over and lose stability, Also with the current administration changes in recent times a stable coaching set up may just be the trick. He has been at 'Mission control" with little resources for a while to

2. Yes sign him up and tell the market his ours, Not sure that anyone else would be better

3. I wouldn't feel too bad about recruitment as we have some real gems and 3 to 4 years ago it was about speed not the height although I do get excited about the prospects of J Grant, J Mulligan, A Cordy & J Roughead could bring to the table.

[Sockeye Salmon]

I'd re-sign him now.

Proven good coach, who, even if he had a shocker of a year, would still be a better coach than any other recycled guy you could get.

Why would you go for an untried coach like Bond, Cameron or Buckley? Massive risk to take on someone who may not cut it at the senior level at all. (Buckley, FFS! We don't even know if he could coach the local under 10's)

[LostDoggy]

Couldn't agree more SS.

[LostDoggy]

My guess is that he could have been a lot more active, yes he has moved on some players but Ray, Power and McMahon forced his hand for trades rather than the other way around.
We initially tried hard to keep Ray last year.
On top of that we took the easy road by adding experienced players with not long use-by dates like Hudson, Akermanis and Welsh.

Malthouse would be an interesting one but I'm not so sure about Buckley. I'm always skeptical on coaching appointments for star players that haven't done their apprenticeship.

Certainly a legitimate perspective on our trading etc., but I've been quite happy with our recycled players:

1. Huddo has been an unqualified success in a weak area (and a big reason for our slide in '07), and has definitely given breathing space for your Cordys and Roughheads to develop at the right pace.

2. Aker - was a real 'catch' and boost for the reputation and 'standing' of the club; a couple of other clubs were sniffing around as well, and he's still the 'highest profile' player on the list, although we're keeping him under wraps this year. Good for our media profile. Oh, not to mention that he's been a bloody good player as well, and I think a real role model for the likes of Harbrow, Hill and Lynch in terms of professionalism and attitude.

3. Welsh - probably prolonging the career of Johnno by 2 years by taking the focus off Brad up forward, and like Huddo, allows the younger forwards some breathing space to develop instead of having to come in prematurely. Proven quality too.

I guess I'm saying that we haven't really gone out and gotten recycled players just for the sake of it, and they seem to have been very well thought out and the upside has been massive when you consider the flow-on effects of not having gaping holes on the list and the development of our younger players.

With Ray, Power et al, a trigger happy coach would have pulled the plug a season or two earlier, but Rocket did move quite a few players on (West, anyone?) and this is a delicate issue that has big ramifications on the rest of the list -- if a coach is seen as being too 'ruthless' even the remaining players can start to get a bit jumpy, especially the bottom half of the list, which you need performing without worrying about their futures.

While we can debate the details and I certainly don't agree with every decision Rocket's taken, I think on the whole he's gotten the balance pretty right, and the stability and composition of the list is testament to that.

[LostDoggy]

And as for those suggesting that Rocket will get 'complacent' if offered a contract, just don't see that happening. He's the kind of guy who is driven by the desire to win that elusive premiership, not by a big fat noose hanging over his head.

[LostDoggy]

Rocket has been on a steady upward curve since his arrival at the Whitten oval. Whilst there has been troughs along the way, the curve has always pointed in the right direction. He took a basket case from cellar dwellars to a prelim in 4 years.

I believe the next 2 years to be crucial for the big boss man, he has the list available to win the flag, there is no doubt about it. What he needs to discover is how to coach out the fear of success in the group and the club as a whole. We shit ourselves against Hawthorn and had no reason for it!

[GVGjr]

Certainly a legitimate perspective on our trading etc., but I've been quite happy with our recycled players:

1. Huddo has been an unqualified success in a weak area (and a big reason for our slide in '07), and has definitely given breathing space for your Cordys and Roughheads to develop at the right pace.


Hudson had a lot to prove last year to show Adelaide that they were wrong and he sort of did that. This season will tell a vastly truer story on his dedication and desire which he hasn't earned a terrific reputation for. Looks good so far but I'd wait until the end of the season before saying it was a success for us.
My issue with the Hudson trade isn't really Hudson at all but more that we really didn't have the players on the list coming through to justify getting and older ruckman.



2. Aker - was a real 'catch' and boost for the reputation and 'standing' of the club; a couple of other clubs were sniffing around as well, and he's still the 'highest profile' player on the list, although we're keeping him under wraps this year. Good for our media profile. Oh, not to mention that he's been a bloody good player as well, and I think a real role model for the likes of Harbrow, Hill and Lynch in terms of professionalism and attitude.


Aker was a promoters dream and gave us significant impact for memberships and excitement but this will be his last year to take us into the uncharted territory all us good supporters have been hoping for. We won't know until late in the year if he has really made that much difference to us on the field.
He virtually cost us nothing as well.




3. Welsh - probably prolonging the career of Johnno by 2 years by taking the focus off Brad up forward, and like Huddo, allows the younger forwards some breathing space to develop instead of having to come in prematurely. Proven quality too.



I don't see it like that. Johnson had a bad year by his standards in 2008 because of niggling injuries. The form of Welsh and Johnson really aren't linked at all.
From what I have seen so far Johnson will have a vastly better 2009 with or without Welsh on the field.



With Ray, Power et al, a trigger happy coach would have pulled the plug a season or two earlier, but Rocket did move quite a few players on (West, anyone?) and this is a delicate issue that has big ramifications on the rest of the list -- if a coach is seen as being too 'ruthless' even the remaining players can start to get a bit jumpy, especially the bottom half of the list, which you need performing without worrying about their futures.


He is a conservative list manager by nature which isn't a bad thing. My initial response was to challenge Griffen#16's statement that he had overhauled the list. Clarkson overhauled his list whereas Eade had made vastly more subtle changes.

I'd rather not comment on the West debacle again because the appalling manner in which it was managed still grates me.

[Remi Moses]

I'd re-sign him now.

Proven good coach, who, even if he had a shocker of a year, would still be a better coach than any other recycled guy you could get.

Why would you go for an untried coach like Bond, Cameron or Buckley? Massive risk to take on someone who may not cut it at the senior level at all. (Buckley, FFS! We don't even know if he could coach the local under 10's)

My sentiments also,I actually reckon Rocket wont be going anywhere. Surely Buckley would be smart enough to take an assistants role somewhere[Tony Shaw]Personally I'd be please if we maintained our ground in the top 6,as time is required until our young Key Forwards are ready to have an impact.

[Go_Dogs]

Has he really overhauled the list? I tend to think he has been cautious with the list management.

As for other coaches, not that many that are coming out of contract would interest other than Williams and of course there is always the chance that Matthews could be swayed to get back into coaching.

I'm pretty happy with Eade at the helm though but he still needs to consolidate and improve on last seasons progress.

I think there are plausible arguments both sides of the coin.

Looking over the list, there are a number of players who have joined since Eade's arrival, Addison, Akermanis, Boumann, Callan, Cordy, Everitt, Grant, Harbrow, Higgins, Hill, Hudson, Jones, Lynch, Morris, O'Keefe, O'Shea, Reid, Roughead, Stack, Tiller, Ward, Welsh, Wood plus the rookies (may be missing a few).

Over a 4 year period, that's a turnover of 23 players, only counting the senior list - and I have not included guys from the 04 draft in that, Griffen, Williams etc. Admittedly 5 of these players weren't 'young' draftees.

That's still a fair chunk of the list that has been turned over since 2005.


As with you, I'm pretty comfortable with Eade. Williams might be one coach who does move to Victoria at the close of the season - I guess pending both his and the boards decision - especially given their current off-field woes. I have been a big fan of Williams, but he needs a big year this season. Got a talented list.

[Twodogs]

Hudson had a lot to prove last year to show Adelaide that they were wrong and he sort of did that. This season will tell a vastly truer story on his dedication and desire which he hasn't earned a terrific reputation for. Looks good so far but I'd wait until the end of the season before saying it was a success for us.
My issue with the Hudson trade isn't really Hudson at all but more that we really didn't have the players on the list coming through to justify getting and older ruckman.









We needed a ruckman as a matter of urgency and one of the better ruckmen in the comp came to our club. I've got no problems with his recruitment at all.