Ollie fan

I was very much against Buckley at first, but as time goes by it seems extremely clear that the team is transitioning in the right direction and that that direction should be maintained. A new, inexperienced coach would almost certainly want to put his own stamp on the team and change the direction – which is exactly what Mark Neeld did with results we all know about. Buckley seems to understand that we are headed in the right direction and I suspect he would simply concentrate on improving our skills as he was extremely skilled himself. So I have now become very much for him.

Discussing whether he was blindsided is probably a waste of time, but..... Not many coaches are sacked straight after an 83 pt win.

Actually I have it on very good authority that he was saying EXACTLY that - how close we were- to a friend of mine the day before he was sacked.

I know it is not the answer but to my memory, under Northey we never lost the close ones. I think back then the players just had a mindset of somehow getting the ball forward and somehow kicking the necessary score and then defending as if their lives depended on it

Actually, Goody has done exactly that on several occasions.

That doesn't respond to my point at all

This really bothers me. To me, that's not galling practice. I don't care one bit if they miss the speccie boundary shots. They need to practise the regulation shots, set shots from 30-40 m out on a slight angle, etc. If we regularly kicked those, there wouldn't be a problem.

You can't let it go, can you Franky? If it new coach is a dud - but of course I hope he isn't - I sincerely hope you will eat a bit of humble pie. But you won't.

Yep, well, he did get midfield minutes. Perhaps you didn't watch the games. But we needed him in defence because McVee and Salem were not really cutting the mustard. And much as I like Rivers and his energy and enthusiasm and ability, his field and goal kicking is on a par with Trac and Clarrie.

Can someone tell me about this guy Lual? He looks great to me and I'd like to know if he is tied to us, how old he is - just a bit about him? Sorry for my ignorance.

Very much in the building phase in those years. Nowhere near where Richmond was at

"Don't it always seem the way that you don't know what you've got till it's gone" - Joni Mitchell

And this attitude was the problem. Supporters see 22 and 23 as disastrous years. Forgetting that other coaches who are spoken about very highly here - including McRae and Chris Scott - couldn't even get their team back in the finals the year after their flags. Noone liked the two straight sets exits but at least we were contending. And I have spoken about the "great list" here before- yes, it was a very good list BUT SO WERE A FEW OTHERS. And in both years we had injuries at the wrong time of the year and also kicked ourselves out of almost all the finals we lost. Reading what others are saying confirms that Goodwin was an innovator, a strategist, and a motivator although he could never overcome the fact that our great list did not have a truly good key forward, and that our key midfielders were not good kickers. He tried, though, recruiting for key forwards and good field kicks.

I think he is a modern Tommy Hafey in that he got an inferior team to perform much better than it should but not well enough for the final hurdle. Sure, Sydney had some excellent players but also some real weaknesses. I think he would do very well with us.

That is gracious. Thank you

Interesting take on me. I said I was angry about the decision and the way it was done and at the people who led to it. I wouldn't call that moaning; I'd call it fury. And I don't think I am hostile. I just don't like "supporters" who do nothing but undermine.

Did you see the article in the HS today by the convent of Deebrief? He says the "supporters" had a lot to do with it.

It's two days now, and I still feel absolute anger at all the people, many of them on this site, who have been relentlessly critical of him. The talk about money is sickening. If they think that money is what motivates the coach or the players, they have no effing idea. I am really worried that some great players are going to leave the club. I fear that it is going to be a classic case of, be careful what you wish for, with many of the people on this site. And then, will they say, I was wrong? No, they will just be more and more critical, criticising from the sidelines. Yes, I am still extremely angry.

I 100% agree with the opening post.

Well, the haters on this site got what they wanted and unfortunately might get what they deserve.

I am so filthy about the sacking – not just the sacking itself, but the way it was done and the way it has been leaked. But anyway, the haters on this site have had their way. Let's just hope that it doesn't turn into a case of, be careful what you wish for… But I think it might

Yep, a 14 goal win - a great day to be negative about the club. I know they are the wooden spooners, but it was 14 goals. Can't we just enjoy it?

What is so annoying but predictable is the way that ANY thread on this site gets sabotaged by people bagging out club and our players. FFS stick to the Goody thread please, because I can safely ignore the idiocy in that thread. As for Mihocek: I've always thought he was a really good player, but don't we already have a smart, perceptive, midsized forward who plays above his height level? His name is Jake Melksham. And if you put both of them in the forward line, and have another 2 or 3 smalls, that doesn't leave much room for developing power forwards like we would like JVR, Jeffo and Kentfield to be. And let's not forget our top goalkicker for a number of years, Fritta. So I think Mihocek would be a good get if we didn't have Milkshake, but we do.

I am not an MCC member so can't respond. But i hate the music too.

I've often thought this myself. I am a firm believer that defence wins flags. Hard contested footy will never be out of date in my view. But yes, there has certainly been a dropoff in the form of s ome key players.