Did it feel like you were peddling hard but just couldn’t get the result?
I thought we worked really hard. (We were) Well and truly in the game, particularly in the first half more so. At the end of the day you’ve got to convert when you are playing a quality team, you’ve got some challenges, you need to convert.
I thought the scoreboard didn’t reflect really how well we were going in the game to be truthful. But then we got some composure in the third quarter, didn’t use the ball as well and they counter-punched us. Which we know is their strength, the slingshot football.
I thought we contained that pretty well in the first half but a few really bad turnovers came through the midfield and they do what quality sides do and they counter punch you pretty quickly.
To the last quarter, I thought we really fought on. At the end of the day we had equal entries, equal entries from centre-back, but they were slicker with the ball.
Our centre-square bounce work; our ruckmen couldn’t get their hand to the ball. Finally, when we had them under real pressure and contained, they just had an easy bailout kick where I think they’d be really pleased with what their ruckmen and talls did.
Alastair Clarkson said Adelaide were unique with their counter-punch style, did you see that today?
They clearly set shorter stoppages, roll up and they keep a bit of shape in front of the ball, high hand ball and kick it over the top. Sometimes it can be you’re disorganised behind the ball so if you defend off to short pitch, short turnovers, handball game, you’re more inclined to get counter-punched if you’ve got shallow entries. Just when we didn’t want them, we had them.
I think Mundy turned it over twice coming through the midfield, Crozier a really shallow entry in and a couple of things like that. Not blaming those players, but they’re the type of mechanics that will bring on some pressure against a team like that.
How do you explain the bad goal kicking?
I couldn’t make a judgement either way, I think it’s got to be technique, strength and mind.
How do you think the midfield went without Mundy (played halfback) and Fyfe?
Well Mundy we chose to deploy him at half back, I thought he gave us great distribution particularly early, we’re really pleased, really, really pleased.
Is that part of growing the midfield for the future?
Yes no doubt. I thought Walters was a pretty special performance, what did he kick? 3.2 had 30 odd and played through the midfield, its not a bad hit-out. We’ll continue, I think Hill’s inside work, we had Weller on a wing and played half back and Tucker, in his second game, on a wing. It’s clearly a phase we’re working through and you look at Atkins and go ‘Geez he’s a good player, where’s he come from?’ We haven’t seen a lot of him but he was drafted four years ago, he’s a four-year player, so they’re the sorts of things we’re working our way through. We sort of had a great week 0-5, 5-0, 6-0 our weeks don’t change. We prepare and play and train like it’s a grand final every week because if you don’t you never get to where you want to be, so that’s our overriding philosophy.
What kind of vision do you have to sell to people outside of the club?
Well its not about sell, we bring everyone along for the ride and clearly it’s evident by Tucker, Blakely, Grey and Weller playing, I think it’s evident and our senior players are invigorated with that youth coming in. They’re keen to inspire them and lead them and to establish the right habits for them to become successful AFL payers.
Do you change your thinking with what you do at selection on a weekly basis?
I think no doubt if it’s a 50/50 ball, I mean what’s difficult is you get great servants like Mzungu and those sought of characters and we did it the week before. It’s hard to keep your full integrity for selection, but as long as our young players are giving great effort and trying their hardest, well then you can pick them but we’re not going to pick people that don’t give effort and that aren’t committed. So as long as our young players play their part, it allows you to pick them.
You mentioned great servants, and how hard it was to leave them out.
I didn’t say it was hard to leave them out. I think you need to be careful when you are picking a team. You need to keep integrity because you can’t value things and say you value things and then pick people who aren’t exhibiting those values. As long as you can measure dedication then you can do that comfortably.
Given you’re at 0-6, and some of those servants are coming out of contract, are their careers on the line?
We’re not the type of club that conducts our list management post game after round 6 to the media. That would be really disrespectful. I train and treat all my players equally. I support them, guide them and challenge them. I’ll continue to do that until the end of the season or until someone tells me otherwise.
Alex Pearce on Taylor Walker, what did you think of his performance?
We know Alex Pearce is a really good young player. I think Taylor Walker played sore today but in saying that he was deemed fit and out there. At the end of the day he was goalless, a terrific effort by Pearce. A third year player that really stood up last year. He had some shin soreness over the summer. He is really coming along, and I am very pleased.
Pearce happy to play on big-name forwards
Did you like Matthew Taberner’s first half?
I believe he copped a lot of criticism last week. I was frustrated with some things he did last week but I really liked his game today. It shows you’ve got to stick with them. You get in there, have a one-on-one, check how they’re going and commit to tidying up certain areas up. It was a good reminder to me and the coaches that if you work with people they will work for you. I think Matthew Taberner was a good example of that today.
Will the weeks ahead get tougher for you?
Everyday I wake up, I see opportunity. That’s what I see. I see possibility. See what you want to be. Get in the action and repeat the action to achieve. How long that takes? I don’t know. But I know that model works
Does the playing list need to have a bit more clarity over the next six weeks or so?
We are in an ongoing process of assessment. From my role, what I like about the Fremantle Football Club is that people are process driven. They get put in the right seats to do their work. They are supported and challenged and we have rigor. It would be remiss of me to conduct list management assessment in here. You are entitled to write what you see and what you think. But it’s not up to me to apply rigor to your opinion.
How are you seeing the game, does it change in the current situation of being 0-6?
I think it’s an opportunity to grow my coaching staff and improve our processes. I've always seen myself as a teaching coach. Coaching is teaching. I think with my coaching panels and my conditioning staff we have been able to produce and teach players to play the game and improve and be a total system and improve individuals.
If there are traits out there that I don’t possess that I need to possess, I'll identify them and improve them. I see myself as a teaching coach with the ability to teach a group of young men to improve. I think there is no doubt I did that at Fremantle Football Club. I came in and helped change the culture of the place, how we play and the only way you can do that is teaching with a coaching panel. I did that at St Kilda with a another coaching group. I see myself as a coach that teaches, that's what coaching is. I'm certainly supportive on and off field and i'm really excited by the challenge. Clearly I have a time frame. I’ve always coached with huge expectation. We’ve clearly disappointed so then you have to realign and think where are we at, and we do that as a group. I am really enthusiastic about improving our footy and growing young players.
