The second quarter is obviously where it was won and lost for you?
It's pretty easy. They handled the conditions alot better than us and clearly we started the game well, started the game how we wanted to. Second quarter we got smashed at centre bounce, smashed at clearance but it wasn't because we weren't getting our hands on the ball. First possession was eight-all and we were minus eight in clearance for the quarter. So we got our hands on the footy we just didn't handle the conditions and then once we coughed up field position we just couldn't get the ball out of our back half. I think it was 20 inside 50s to none at one stage. So it was around the ball, we were just really really bad in those conditions and then our whole game fell apart.
What more can you do with conditions like that and how do you fix it going forward?
We just need to continue doing what we are doing. Our players are putting in the work. I thought after half time we handled it better. We played a certain way in the first quarter and we tried to play that way when the rain came and we just didn't adjust. We needed to be a bit more direct with our ball movement, we needed to not overuse it. We didn't do either of those. It's a little bit of the ball handling but its a little bit of the mechanics and mindset as well.
Did you have a chance to talk to them about the fact it was going to bucket down?
Yes we spoke about it. We spoke about adjusting to the conditions. We got word that it was going to come before the first quarter. So we went out and played a certain way in the first quarter and to their credit they didn't play wet weather footy. They flicked it around and i thought we had a really good quarter. The rain came a couple of minutes into the second (quarter) and we didn't handle it. We didn't adjust to it. They would've known it was coming.
Three games now it's come down to quarters or periods of time where you've lost it. Do you feel like you're close?
I don't feel like we're not good enough... Put it that way. And that's as a collective, but also individuals that are going in and out of games and we need to address that. We need to make sure we are contributing for four quarters as individuals as well as a team.
Do you need more support for Nat Fyfe and Michael Walters?
Probably more consistent support. I feel like (Adam) Cerra had a fantastic first half, I thought (Darcy) Tucker had his moments in games, and he is starting games really well and to their credit they are getting us off to a good start some of those guys. So it's not necessarily Walters and Fyfe in the first quarters when we are going well, but they sort of carry the load for the rest of the game. We need more contributors. Individuals are contributing, but they are not contributing for four quarters. So we will work on that. We need our players to be on task for four quarters.
Is that the next step for those guys in the 50 games bracket - to give four quarter contributions?
It's for everyone on our list. Everyone that plays today and everyone that plays next week. And that doesn't mean you're going to get possessions. It doesn't mean you're going dominate the game for four quarters but you've got to be executing your role more consistently.
How did you view Jesse Hogan's return?
I thought he competed really well. You never saw him get out-marked. He probably fumbled a little bit at ground level but we just constantly banged the ball long forward of centre which is not really his go. He will have better days when we move the ball a bit better but he will be better for the run. He will build on whatever he does today and whatever he does next week he will continue to build. Like we've said all along with Jesse, it's not about one week, it's about making sure he stays in the team now and make sure he keeps building and becomes the player we know he can be.
How’s Sam Sturt looking?
He rolled his ankle. It was a really good sign that he came back on. With a 6-day break we’ll have to weigh it up. Clearly, he’ll get scanned and then get assessed by the doctors but it’s a good sign that he came back on.
Andy Brayshaw had trouble with a corked calf throughout the game, did you manage his minutes?
No, he was fine. He had normal rotations. We ended up dropping him in playing six forwards at one stage which limited his game time a little bit but he’s alright.
How close was Stephen Hill?
Well he was in, we selected him clearly. He picked up a cork at training and it was just one of those things where he was unlucky. Wrong place, wrong time, got a cork in his calf and we just didn’t want to take any risks with Stephen. He’ll come up for this week and put his hand up for selection.
Taking on Gold Coast up here next week, they’re a team that’s really flying at the moment. How do you approach that?
The same way we approach every game. We go in playing our way and look to play a more consistent brand for longer. I think what we’ve seen over the first three rounds is that when we play our brand of footy it stacks up, it’s just we have moments in games where we lapse. We go away from our brand and really, we go away from the contest, lose field position and we can’t handle that. We’ll just be looking to play our brand of footy for longer.
Are you worried about being 0-3 on the ladder with only 17 games in the season?
I’m not because I don’t think our players would’ve lost any belief tonight. I think our players would understand that yes, they didn’t adjust to the conditions and we had a really bad quarter, but we competed with a team that’s right up there on the ladder. I don’t think we’re losing any belief, we clearly need to get better, but the belief is still there. While you’ve got that you’ve got something so I don’t think it’s an issue.
What are your thoughts around not having a clear answer on when you will return from the hub?
As a footy club we’d like clarity of what’s going on, but I trust Simon Garlick, Peter Bell and our board to be doing that work behind the scenes and be pushing for the best interests of our players and our club. My job is to make sure the players are focused and trying to get better every day no matter what the environment. So we’ll continue that philosophy and hopefully we can be more consistent on the field.
If the hub is extended are you happy to go with that?
Yes, there comes a point where we need to get home to families and we need to start playing games at Optus (Stadium), but we’re also mindful that we need to keep the AFL going and we need to do our part in that. If it means we have to stay in a hub for another week or another two weeks and then get home, that’s what the AFL tell us to do. I think we just need clarity and an end point so the sooner the AFL can give us that the better we’ll be.
Are you hopeful you’ll be able to get home as well, not just into another hotel?
Of course we are. Our number one priority is when we go home, we can do what we have to do at home. The government has got a lot to sort out and sort through and we’ve got to look after all the people in WA, though we would like some clarity of what the future look like.
