Goody's five big changes of 2021

[Deespicable 2,726]

Ok, I have five big changes that have helped our team this year on top of the key one from last year. What I'd love to know is who was responsible? Should Goody get all the credit? I'd love to say I know the answer, but I put my calculated guess at bottom of each move. Interested to hear your views on who is responsible.

1) Loyalty to senior players

In the past Goody has got excited with his new toys (I remember his glee at seeing Oliver play even when Roosy was boss) and promoted players ahead of their time. He was behind the Oscar Mac ahead of Dunny move, he promoted Spargo as an 18yo and kept him in throughout the finals, he pushed Sparrow in for Rd 1 of 2019, he was all over Kossie and added Toby Bedford in at Rd 1 of 2020 for good measure. This year, however, he stuck fat with Jones and Jetta early when almost all of us had them written off, he played ANB over Chandler for Rd 1 and he stayed loyal to Harmes as a mid. In previous years Bowey would have played 5-6 games by now, but not this year.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon he listened to Yze or Chocco on this - my tip is Yze because up until this year the Hawks stuck with senior men and mature bodies. I also reckon Goody's own off-field issues may have helped him see the importance of staying loyal and giving first shot to your senior players.

 2) Giving Hunt another go down back

Ok, so under Roosy, Goody used to love watching Jayden chase back or provide run. Then early in 2018 he decided that Hunt and Frost weren't reliable enough kicks and wanted to follow the Hawthorn/Geelong precise ball movement way. Jordy's influence I suspect. They were banished with Jayden given the occasional lifeline as a pacy forward.  You could see him trying to improve his kicking efficiency, often with a two-handed ball drop to ensure its accuracy. Gone also was any notion of a torp, which he unleashed so successfully in Darwin four years ago. This year someone decided that having Hunt down back again would mean Salem did not have to play on the opposition's quickest forward and as a result would have a fraction of a second more time to set things up. They also saw that under the new rules, Hunt could usually set off and break lines at will if allowed and that assisted our chances of catching other teams over the back. And I don't have the stats, but I reckon his efficiency is pretty high this year. We'd all like him to do a bit more, but his closing speed has helped with our manic pressure on opponents.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon it was Chocco who spotted early that Hunt's kicking may not look a thing of beauty, but is just as effective as his teammates. Chocco also used to love run and carry defenders at Port, so maybe he sat down and said, we are too slow down back, Hunt's your man and Goody listened.

3) Going back to ANB 

ANB was another one of Goody's love childs six years ago when he identified that he was better as a hard-working high half-forward than as a midfield bull (partly because he isn't actually a bull). ANB has always been our No.1 trainer, he works his butt off, but eventually, like most Demonlanders, Goody lost sight of the hard yards he does in games and started counting his turnovers. The result was he was dropped after being one of our best three against Carlton in Rd 2 last year and when he eventually came back in and was over-exuberant in a tackle, the club left him high and dry to cop a four-week dangerous tackle penalty with no appeal.  This year Goody decided to reward his training excellence again and, apart from the Roos game, Nibbler has rewarded everyone with his persistence, his tackle pressure and with a rise in confidence his clever vision plays have mounted (he's not a Robbie Gray and probably never will be, but he's definitely best 22 material) and even the most niggardly of DL'ers now can see why he's been kept on and not delisted.  

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon this one might have actually been Goody himself. He did love ANB when he was a youngster and Goody himself wasn't a beautiful player, but he was a hard-worker and got better and more reliable as he aged.  

4) Returning Harmesy to the middle

There was some logic in trying him down back. In 2020 the club could see Trac had to play more in the middle and with Viney and Oliver, not to mention Angus, in the mix, Goody decided that Harmesy was expendable in the core and might be able to provide run and tightness down back. Harmesy has always been one of our vibrant players - he bumps, he blocks, he has little digs at opponents and he gets caught with the ball (a lot). But he also gets out of trouble (a lot) and he also is almost always the first on the scene of any scrum-style formation and we already know from 2018 that he loves tagging and is not scared of big names. His game against Freo (half of it with a broken hand) was mega courageous and his game and intensity against Sydney was exceptional. He's our Liam Picken - he's quick, he can mark pretty well for his size and he works his butt off. In one sense, Viney's injury is a blessing as it's allowed the move back in the guts to happen without mucking up rotations. He's not a matchwinner, but he's probably our most important role player. 

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I am sure Harmesy was keen to head back into the middle and I reckon Yze may have made Goody more aware of how other sides hate playing against him and what he bring to the table with his ability to get quickly to contests.

5) Playing three talls up forward and down back

This one is still a bit of a work in progress, but I reckon Goody stopped toying with alternate formats (remember how Goody went five smalls up forward against WC in Rd 1 last year) and decided three bigs up front and down back was the go. He was forced to modify this a bit because of injury and classified Fritter as a tall for the first six weeks, but now has a more even mix. Jacko's mobility has helped negate the groundball issues that three talls can create anyway. And May's kicking skills mean he has a tall defender that can break lines as well, so we can get away with what appears a top-heavy set up.  

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: Once again I am not sure if it was Chocco or Yze's knowledge of other programs that forced him to see the light on this. But we can all see it's working down back with Lever and May backed by a regenerated Tomlinson (until injury) and hopefully Petty grows in confidence (he was exceptional pre-season) on the resting rucks the more he plays. 

Finally I'd just like to add that the biggest and most crucial change occured last year and it clearly has helped our entire group feel more worthy and at home.

6) Making Gawny captain

You have to remember that Goody annointed Viney and that Jack was the son of a great and was everything you could (normally) want in a leader with his desperation and courage and fearless hard work at training and in games legendary. But Jack, for all that, is a bit of an individual. He's smart, he's got a good life with a very supportive family. But he couldn't unify the guys and he didn't have the whole side's ear. Gawny may have been a knockabout but he's jungle smart and way more approachable on any number of issues. The umps love him and his banter (so he has their ear as well) and and I think we all underestimate how courageous the big bloke is, partly because he's a big bloke and you expect it. He loves all the old blokes (not just the smart ones) and it is that ability to make everyone at ease that has made him a super leader on and off the field. And if you watch his games, he steps up even more when he's needed.

Closely tied into this is that he has advocated the word of Goody that the players have to be more selfless and work for the team, not as individuals.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: This happened last year and I think the players actually finally got a say and Goody felt under pressure from the media and partners after such a poor 2019 that he had to make the change.

[Smokey 4,389]

The title should be "Goody's ONLY big change of 2021" since you've credited him for playing ANB, and not much else. 

[TRIGON 4,783]

10 minutes ago, Deespicable said:

I also reckon Goody's own off-field issues may have helped him see the importance of staying loyal and giving first shot to your senior players.

I think that you have hit on a point that explains the divergence in performance between Richmond and Melbourne; in both instances the coaches ex-wives got the Game Plan as part of the settlement.

Edited May 11, 2021 by TRIGON

[binman 43,020]

6 minutes ago, Smokey said:

The title should be "Goody's ONLY big change of 2021" since you've credited him for playing ANB, and not much else. 

Yep, fair slice of backhanded compliment in the phrase:  Person responsible for making Goody see the light

If that is the starting point not much room to credit goody for anything. 

Edited May 11, 2021 by binman

[JimmyGadson 3,455]

I don't think it's any wonder that Goodwin has had his best years with strong support staff around him. 

When they were all off-loaded, we went down hill. We then employ Yze and Choco and we start a year 8-0.

Goodwin has some great qualities as coach but to suggest this turn around is mainly thanks to him would be silly and completely discounts the importance of a strong team of assistants. For so many reasons I don't even know where to begin. 

Edited May 11, 2021 by JimmyGadson

[DeeZone 9,856]

19 minutes ago, Deespicable said:

Ok, I have five big changes that have helped our team this year on top of the key one from last year. What I'd love to know is who was responsible? Should Goody get all the credit? I'd love to say I know the answer, but I put my calculated guess at bottom of each move. Interested to hear your views on who is responsible.

1) Loyalty to senior players

In the past Goody has got excited with his new toys (I remember his glee at seeing Oliver play even when Roosy was boss) and promoted players ahead of their time. He was behind the Oscar Mac ahead of Dunny move, he promoted Spargo as an 18yo and kept him in throughout the finals, he pushed Sparrow in for Rd 1 of 2019, he was all over Kossie and added Toby Bedford in at Rd 1 of 2020 for good measure. This year, however, he stuck fat with Jones and Jetta early when almost all of us had them written off, he played ANB over Chandler for Rd 1 and he stayed loyal to Harmes as a mid. In previous years Bowey would have played 5-6 games by now, but not this year.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon he listened to Yze or Chocco on this - my tip is Yze because up until this year the Hawks stuck with senior men and mature bodies. I also reckon Goody's own off-field issues may have helped him see the importance of staying loyal and giving first shot to your senior players.

 2) Giving Hunt another go down back

Ok, so under Roosy, Goody used to love watching Jayden chase back or provide run. Then early in 2018 he decided that Hunt and Frost weren't reliable enough kicks and wanted to follow the Hawthorn/Geelong precise ball movement way. Jordy's influence I suspect. They were banished with Jayden given the occasional lifeline as a pacy forward.  You could see him trying to improve his kicking efficiency, often with a two-handed ball drop to ensure its accuracy. Gone also was any notion of a torp, which he unleashed so successfully in Darwin four years ago. This year someone decided that having Hunt down back again would mean Salem did not have to play on the opposition's quickest forward and as a result would have a fraction of a second more time to set things up. They also saw that under the new rules, Hunt could usually set off and break lines at will if allowed and that assisted our chances of catching other teams over the back. And I don't have the stats, but I reckon his efficiency is pretty high this year. We'd all like him to do a bit more, but his closing speed has helped with our manic pressure on opponents.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon it was Chocco who spotted early that Hunt's kicking may not look a thing of beauty, but is just as effective as his teammates. Chocco also used to love run and carry defenders at Port, so maybe he sat down and said, we are too slow down back, Hunt's your man and Goody listened.

3) Going back to ANB 

ANB was another one of Goody's love childs six years ago when he identified that he was better as a hard-working high half-forward than as a midfield bull (partly because he isn't actually a bull). ANB has always been our No.1 trainer, he works his butt off, but eventually, like most Demonlanders, Goody lost sight of the hard yards he does in games and started counting his turnovers. The result was he was dropped after being one of our best three against Carlton in Rd 2 last year and when he eventually came back in and was over-exuberant in a tackle, the club left him high and dry to cop a four-week dangerous tackle penalty with no appeal.  This year Goody decided to reward his training excellence again and, apart from the Roos game, Nibbler has rewarded everyone with his persistence, his tackle pressure and with a rise in confidence his clever vision plays have mounted (he's not a Robbie Gray and probably never will be, but he's definitely best 22 material) and even the most niggardly of DL'ers now can see why he's been kept on and not delisted.  

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon this one might have actually been Goody himself. He did love ANB when he was a youngster and Goody himself wasn't a beautiful player, but he was a hard-worker and got better and more reliable as he aged.  

4) Returning Harmesy to the middle

There was some logic in trying him down back. In 2020 the club could see Trac had to play more in the middle and with Viney and Oliver, not to mention Angus, in the mix, Goody decided that Harmesy was expendable in the core and might be able to provide run and tightness down back. Harmesy has always been one of our vibrant players - he bumps, he blocks, he has little digs at opponents and he gets caught with the ball (a lot). But he also gets out of trouble (a lot) and he also is almost always the first on the scene of any scrum-style formation and we already know from 2018 that he loves tagging and is not scared of big names. His game against Freo (half of it with a broken hand) was mega courageous and his game and intensity against Sydney was exceptional. He's our Liam Picken - he's quick, he can mark pretty well for his size and he works his butt off. In one sense, Viney's injury is a blessing as it's allowed the move back in the guts to happen without mucking up rotations. He's not a matchwinner, but he's probably our most important role player. 

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I am sure Harmesy was keen to head back into the middle and I reckon Yze may have made Goody more aware of how other sides hate playing against him and what he bring to the table with his ability to get quickly to contests.

5) Playing three talls up forward and down back

This one is still a bit of a work in progress, but I reckon Goody stopped toying with alternate formats (remember how Goody went five smalls up forward against WC in Rd 1 last year) and decided three bigs up front and down back was the go. He was forced to modify this a bit because of injury and classified Fritter as a tall for the first six weeks, but now has a more even mix. Jacko's mobility has helped negate the groundball issues that three talls can create anyway. And May's kicking skills mean he has a tall defender that can break lines as well, so we can get away with what appears a top-heavy set up.  

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: Once again I am not sure if it was Chocco or Yze's knowledge of other programs that forced him to see the light on this. But we can all see it's working down back with Lever and May backed by a regenerated Tomlinson (until injury) and hopefully Petty grows in confidence (he was exceptional pre-season) on the resting rucks the more he plays. 

Finally I'd just like to add that the biggest and most crucial change occured last year and it clearly has helped our entire group feel more worthy and at home.

6) Making Gawny captain

You have to remember that Goody annointed Viney and that Jack was the son of a great and was everything you could (normally) want in a leader with his desperation and courage and fearless hard work at training and in games legendary. But Jack, for all that, is a bit of an individual. He's smart, he's got a good life with a very supportive family. But he couldn't unify the guys and he didn't have the whole side's ear. Gawny may have been a knockabout but he's jungle smart and way more approachable on any number of issues. The umps love him and his banter (so he has their ear as well) and and I think we all underestimate how courageous the big bloke is, partly because he's a big bloke and you expect it. He loves all the old blokes (not just the smart ones) and it is that ability to make everyone at ease that has made him a super leader on and off the field. And if you watch his games, he steps up even more when he's needed.

Closely tied into this is that he has advocated the word of Goody that the players have to be more selfless and work for the team, not as individuals.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: This happened last year and I think the players actually finally got a say and Goody felt under pressure from the media and partners after such a poor 2019 that he had to make the change.

Great observations Deespicable and clarity of your thoughts great piece. (Are you a writer)??

[DeeZone 9,856]

Despicable is making observations and I must admit that at the start of the year I thought what the hell is going on with the team, I watched and re-watched games to try and get a handle on why we all of a sudden clicked as a team. I think that Deespicables observations have helped to explain the quantum leap in performance and for that I say Thanks.

[The Chief 697]

The 2 biggest reasons for improvement this year are we are now competent in field kicking skills and our ability to clear the ball from congestion.  It’s as simple as that, forget all the other fluff. 

[Superunknown 4,217]

Great post.

[mauriesy 7,299]

2 minutes ago, The Chief said:

The 2 biggest reasons for improvement this year are we are now competent in field kicking skills and our ability to clear the ball from congestion.  It’s as simple as that, forget all the other fluff. 

I don't think much increased pressure and a more solid defensive structure is "fluff".

[tiers 2,840]

Well summarised Dee. But to me it is as much, if not more, a case of the coach constructing a team and team plan around his assets.

In the past there have been times when it seemed that the team and team plan was based on some pre-conceived plan (typically a copy of the current fashion) and that the players had to adjust their games to suit the plan. This led to many disappointments.

Finally, this year, we have the assets - three strong talls at the back, an in and under midfield cohort, two tall mobile ruckmen to share the load, three talls and three smalls at the front and two running, roving wingmen to patrol the boundaries. All that is missing is a pair of hard running midfielders to complete the plan by improving the clearance rate.  And a coach who let's it happen.

Go dees.

 

 

[picket fence 17,172]

Why has Goodys "off field issues" meant he rewards loyalty??

[Fanatique Demon 2,648]

Don’t forget natural growth and experience.

With players, 100 games is often cited as the number it takes before we start to see their best. Maybe the same is true of coaches.

[old55 23,609]

How about 6 factors that made me keep the faith:

1. Communication
It's clear the players love to play for him and that has been directly endorsed by Brendan McCartney.  Every player that we've wanted to retain has re-signed.  We've got every player we seriously chased from other clubs (except Jamie Elliott who didn't move anyway) and they've invariably said "When I met Goody I was onboard"

2. List Management
He's gone after the right players in the right order to strengthen our squad - Hibberd, Melksham, Lewis, Lever, May, Langdon, Tomlinson, B.Brown.  Josh Mahoney deserves a lot of credit here, his list management was superb from trading players in and out, to strengthening our draft hand at the right times.  And it helps having a great talent spotter in Jason Taylor.

3. Ruthlessness
He's not afraid to make the hard decisions. He traded poster boys Watts and Hogan.  He made Max sole captain.  He was a very good player who got the absolute most out of his talent and it's clear he's driven.  Where others see boring monotone, I see steely determination.

4. Game Style
The contest wins big finals and that's the bedrock he's built the team on.  Since the Northey days we've been flakey in this area and it was clear we weren't ever seriously challenging for the flag because of it - when the whips were cracking we wilted - but not now.  Next he's focussed on defence - the second pillar to winning flags by replacing OMac and Frost with May and Lever. 

5. Maturity
Our best players are now up around the 100 game mark - Petracca, Oliver, Salem, Brayshaw, Gawn and, as above, we've brought in quality experience to augment them.  It can also take time for a coach to hone his craft - look at Bomber Thompson and Hardwick.

6. Reasons.
We've has setbacks along the way but there were explainable reasons for them, not excuses.  I've acknowledged this year he's run out of "reasons" and we have to play and win finals and it looks like we're on track.  I think the adversity we've faced over the past few years will ultimately stand us in good stead and remind us that it doesn't come easy.

[drysdale demon 4,837]

4 minutes ago, picket fence said:

Why has Goodys "off field issues" meant he rewards loyalty??

I would suggest he is just guessing.

[whatwhat say what 22,775]

lotsa speculation without any actual acknowledgement of change process

football departments in clubs tend to operate by consensus decisions not the whims of individuals

one thing i have noticed in the last year is that goodwin seems to be primarily a bench-based coach rather than sitting in the box - and has been so since midway through last year

correlates nicely with our run of form since the port adelaide shellacking i think?

he has always been said to have a great relationship with the players; their support for him has been unanimous since day dot, and he seems to be very much a 'relationship and communication' based coach

[binman 43,020]

1 hour ago, JimmyGadson said:

Goodwin has some great qualities as coach but to suggest this turn around is mainly thanks to him would be silly and completely discounts the importance of a strong team of assistants. For so many reasons I don't even know where to begin. 

Who has suggested our turn around is mainly thanks to Goody?

I never venture into the is goodwin the right coach thread anymore, but the prevailing thinking in other threads on DL seems to be that Yze and Choco should be getting most of the credit for our 'turn around'. Goody seems to get precious little credit. And Richardson none

I agree JG that it is a team effort and all current, and previous assistants etc, for that matter deserves credit for where we are at. Impossible, not to mention futile, to assign percentage to their contribution, including that of goody.

That said I am more than happy to say Goodwin deserves the lions share of the credit of where are we at. All of it? Of course not. As you say that would be silly.

But it is equally silly to suggest our coach since 2017 (who had key responsibilities as an assistant coach for the two previous years) is not the key architect of where we now sit as a club.

He would certainly take the lion's share of the criticism and blame if we were going poorly, as was the case in 2019 and 2020 with many here on Demonland. 

Speaking of silly, i reckon there are more than a few silly posts in the is goodwin the right coach thread.

When we win a flag, I will enjoy revisiting it for some light entertainment. 

Edited May 11, 2021 by binman

[Sir Why You Little 37,046]

Williams and Yze have got a lot to do with it. They both came from Flag Winning environments and understand what is required. 
Williams has improved our Field kicking 100%
Yze has taken Clarry to another level

There’s 2 big reasons…

I think Alan Richardson is also a dam good assistant, who i bet my left ball, that he and Goodwin spend hours talking tactics through  

 

Edited May 11, 2021 by Sir Why You Little

[Redleg 40,944]

1 hour ago, Deespicable said:

Ok, I have five big changes that have helped our team this year on top of the key one from last year. What I'd love to know is who was responsible? Should Goody get all the credit? I'd love to say I know the answer, but I put my calculated guess at bottom of each move. Interested to hear your views on who is responsible.

1) Loyalty to senior players

In the past Goody has got excited with his new toys (I remember his glee at seeing Oliver play even when Roosy was boss) and promoted players ahead of their time. He was behind the Oscar Mac ahead of Dunny move, he promoted Spargo as an 18yo and kept him in throughout the finals, he pushed Sparrow in for Rd 1 of 2019, he was all over Kossie and added Toby Bedford in at Rd 1 of 2020 for good measure. This year, however, he stuck fat with Jones and Jetta early when almost all of us had them written off, he played ANB over Chandler for Rd 1 and he stayed loyal to Harmes as a mid. In previous years Bowey would have played 5-6 games by now, but not this year.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon he listened to Yze or Chocco on this - my tip is Yze because up until this year the Hawks stuck with senior men and mature bodies. I also reckon Goody's own off-field issues may have helped him see the importance of staying loyal and giving first shot to your senior players.

 2) Giving Hunt another go down back

Ok, so under Roosy, Goody used to love watching Jayden chase back or provide run. Then early in 2018 he decided that Hunt and Frost weren't reliable enough kicks and wanted to follow the Hawthorn/Geelong precise ball movement way. Jordy's influence I suspect. They were banished with Jayden given the occasional lifeline as a pacy forward.  You could see him trying to improve his kicking efficiency, often with a two-handed ball drop to ensure its accuracy. Gone also was any notion of a torp, which he unleashed so successfully in Darwin four years ago. This year someone decided that having Hunt down back again would mean Salem did not have to play on the opposition's quickest forward and as a result would have a fraction of a second more time to set things up. They also saw that under the new rules, Hunt could usually set off and break lines at will if allowed and that assisted our chances of catching other teams over the back. And I don't have the stats, but I reckon his efficiency is pretty high this year. We'd all like him to do a bit more, but his closing speed has helped with our manic pressure on opponents.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon it was Chocco who spotted early that Hunt's kicking may not look a thing of beauty, but is just as effective as his teammates. Chocco also used to love run and carry defenders at Port, so maybe he sat down and said, we are too slow down back, Hunt's your man and Goody listened.

3) Going back to ANB 

ANB was another one of Goody's love childs six years ago when he identified that he was better as a hard-working high half-forward than as a midfield bull (partly because he isn't actually a bull). ANB has always been our No.1 trainer, he works his butt off, but eventually, like most Demonlanders, Goody lost sight of the hard yards he does in games and started counting his turnovers. The result was he was dropped after being one of our best three against Carlton in Rd 2 last year and when he eventually came back in and was over-exuberant in a tackle, the club left him high and dry to cop a four-week dangerous tackle penalty with no appeal.  This year Goody decided to reward his training excellence again and, apart from the Roos game, Nibbler has rewarded everyone with his persistence, his tackle pressure and with a rise in confidence his clever vision plays have mounted (he's not a Robbie Gray and probably never will be, but he's definitely best 22 material) and even the most niggardly of DL'ers now can see why he's been kept on and not delisted.  

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I reckon this one might have actually been Goody himself. He did love ANB when he was a youngster and Goody himself wasn't a beautiful player, but he was a hard-worker and got better and more reliable as he aged.  

4) Returning Harmesy to the middle

There was some logic in trying him down back. In 2020 the club could see Trac had to play more in the middle and with Viney and Oliver, not to mention Angus, in the mix, Goody decided that Harmesy was expendable in the core and might be able to provide run and tightness down back. Harmesy has always been one of our vibrant players - he bumps, he blocks, he has little digs at opponents and he gets caught with the ball (a lot). But he also gets out of trouble (a lot) and he also is almost always the first on the scene of any scrum-style formation and we already know from 2018 that he loves tagging and is not scared of big names. His game against Freo (half of it with a broken hand) was mega courageous and his game and intensity against Sydney was exceptional. He's our Liam Picken - he's quick, he can mark pretty well for his size and he works his butt off. In one sense, Viney's injury is a blessing as it's allowed the move back in the guts to happen without mucking up rotations. He's not a matchwinner, but he's probably our most important role player. 

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: I am sure Harmesy was keen to head back into the middle and I reckon Yze may have made Goody more aware of how other sides hate playing against him and what he bring to the table with his ability to get quickly to contests.

5) Playing three talls up forward and down back

This one is still a bit of a work in progress, but I reckon Goody stopped toying with alternate formats (remember how Goody went five smalls up forward against WC in Rd 1 last year) and decided three bigs up front and down back was the go. He was forced to modify this a bit because of injury and classified Fritter as a tall for the first six weeks, but now has a more even mix. Jacko's mobility has helped negate the groundball issues that three talls can create anyway. And May's kicking skills mean he has a tall defender that can break lines as well, so we can get away with what appears a top-heavy set up.  

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: Once again I am not sure if it was Chocco or Yze's knowledge of other programs that forced him to see the light on this. But we can all see it's working down back with Lever and May backed by a regenerated Tomlinson (until injury) and hopefully Petty grows in confidence (he was exceptional pre-season) on the resting rucks the more he plays. 

Finally I'd just like to add that the biggest and most crucial change occured last year and it clearly has helped our entire group feel more worthy and at home.

6) Making Gawny captain

You have to remember that Goody annointed Viney and that Jack was the son of a great and was everything you could (normally) want in a leader with his desperation and courage and fearless hard work at training and in games legendary. But Jack, for all that, is a bit of an individual. He's smart, he's got a good life with a very supportive family. But he couldn't unify the guys and he didn't have the whole side's ear. Gawny may have been a knockabout but he's jungle smart and way more approachable on any number of issues. The umps love him and his banter (so he has their ear as well) and and I think we all underestimate how courageous the big bloke is, partly because he's a big bloke and you expect it. He loves all the old blokes (not just the smart ones) and it is that ability to make everyone at ease that has made him a super leader on and off the field. And if you watch his games, he steps up even more when he's needed.

Closely tied into this is that he has advocated the word of Goody that the players have to be more selfless and work for the team, not as individuals.

Person responsible for making Goody see the light: This happened last year and I think the players actually finally got a say and Goody felt under pressure from the media and partners after such a poor 2019 that he had to make the change.

Harmes has played 2 games.

I think my posting on DL, in strongly arguing we keep Tom Mac, Hunt and JJ and then playing Hunt back on the hbf, when many on here wanted them traded/delisted, is an equal contribution to the points quoted above.

[Its Time for Another 4,225]

Frankly it's a seriously pointless exercise to have a thread without any creditable knowledge guessing which coach is responsible for what especially as your point seems to be mainly to try and find everything that Goodwin isn't responsible for. 

Why don't we just be happy that we are witnessing the biggest one season improvement since '64. There's so many reasons for it I find this exercise misdirected. It would have been better to have been a thread about what's improved. 

The players are saying the single most significant improvement is nothing to do with the coaches it's the playing group culture which is playing for team not individuals. To paraphrase Trac this week on SEN the culture change originated after the two loses in Cairns which made the players realise the culture was broken and needed to be fixed by them and across the club. They even spoke to Bartlett about it.  He puts the success of that down to a collective maturity in the group. It's taken 3 1/2 rebuilds since 2007 to get enough players through the system to reach the current maturity which appears to be reaping these benefits. 

If you want to credit someone for the coaching credit Bartlett and Pert for holding faith in Goodwin's gameplan and ability. MFC history has been a coach with Goodwin's record would have been sacked by now and we'd be dealing with yet another upheavel probably with another unproven coach.   

For what it's worth if you go back through Goody's messaging from day one it's always been about the contest. That's what we're seeing now and that's what makes it look more sustainable than any MFC team I've seen since '64. Of course there are a lot of other changes we are seeing this year to the way they are playing and for sure various of the coaches have had a hand in that but let's praise the collective and particularly Goody for embracing the changes not hindering them. 

[Slartibartfast 17,309]

1 hour ago, Pollyanna said:

How about 6 factors that made me keep the faith:

1. Communication
It's clear the players love to play for him and that has been directly endorsed by Brendan McCartney.  Every player that we've wanted to retain has re-signed.  We've got every player we seriously chased from other clubs (except Jamie Elliott who didn't move anyway) and they've invariably said "When I met Goody I was onboard"

2. List Management
He's gone after the right players in the right order to strengthen our squad - Hibberd, Melksham, Lewis, Lever, May, Langdon, Tomlinson, B.Brown.  Josh Mahoney deserves a lot of credit here, his list management was superb from trading players in and out, to strengthening our draft hand at the right times.  And it helps having a great talent spotter in Jason Taylor.

3. Ruthlessness
He's not afraid to make the hard decisions. He traded poster boys Watts and Hogan.  He made Max sole captain.  He was a very good player who got the absolute most out of his talent and it's clear he's driven.  Where others see boring monotone, I see steely determination.

4. Game Style
The contest wins big finals and that's the bedrock he's built the team on.  Since the Northey days we've been flakey in this area and it was clear we weren't ever seriously challenging for the flag because of it - when the whips were cracking we wilted - but not now.  Next he's focussed on defence - the second pillar to winning flags by replacing OMac and Frost with May and Lever. 

5. Maturity
Our best players are now up around the 100 game mark - Petracca, Oliver, Salem, Brayshaw, Gawn and, as above, we've brought in quality experience to augment them.  It can also take time for a coach to hone his craft - look at Bomber Thompson and Hardwick.

6. Reasons.
We've has setbacks along the way but there were explainable reasons for them, not excuses.  I've acknowledged this year he's run out of "reasons" and we have to play and win finals and it looks like we're on track.  I think the adversity we've faced over the past few years will ultimately stand us in good stead and remind us that it doesn't come easy.

Outstanding.

[buck_nekkid 5,876]

1: now single

2: new hair

3: chocks and ooze

4: players maturing

5: system improved 

 

[Demon17 5,188]

15 minutes ago, It's Time said:

Frankly it's a seriously pointless exercise to have a thread without any creditable knowledge guessing which coach is responsible for what especially as your point seems to be mainly to try and find everything that Goodwin isn't responsible for. 

Why don't we just be happy that we are witnessing the biggest one season improvement since '64. There's so many reasons for it I find this exercise misdirected. It would have been better to have been a thread about what's improved. 

 

Spot on comment and a great opinion-starter of a thread topic.

Why wev'e improved?

Selfless team

Yze, Williams

Maturity

Gawn

Forward entry

Laver/May convergence

Hunt re-birth

Jason Taylor - by definition Langdon, May, Lever, Pickett , Jackson..........................

Failure is an orphan.

Success has many parents. All of the above have a part-claim, but to give Goody credit, he's the guy in the spotlight and it doesn't happen without his leadership. Some will, but not all.

[Fritta and Turner 4,428]

I know winners are grinners but the team looks happy when they play.  That must come from the coach.  

[Diamond_Jim 12,592]

I have been thinking....

Could it have been....

"the learnings"