David Neitz and Paul Hopgood reflect on their great mate Neale (26.05.26)
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What is the significance of Neale Daniher's legacy?
Breakfast with Gary and Tim.
Great to have you with us this morning. We're remembering Neil Danaher. I just spoke to the brother, Terry. He had a lot of... His boys were mainly from the two... He started in 98 as a coach. And the prelim final was great. But that was kind of the end of an era.
How did Neale Daniher impact his players during his coaching career?
A lot of us retired in the next year. But his boys really developed from 2000 on, which was the year that they made the grand final. And then he coached for the next six or seven years. And he had a couple of... I think he had a couple of favourites. We're going to talk to two of them. David Neitz was one of them, the former Melbourne captain, Hall of Famer and the big freeze, eighth slider, and he joins us on the line. Morning, Neitz.
What memorable moments stand out from Neale Daniher's coaching?
A sad morning, mate, but an opportunity to remember a great man.
Yeah, it goes. Yeah, thanks for that. It was, yeah, he's an amazing person. And you're right, you know, he did take over the team. in 98 had some hard decisions to make and had to make one with you really at the start with your skippership at that point in time which which I know he had to deliver that message to you, which he does in brutal fashion sometimes. But the gravity of the position as coach and his want for the team to get better and grow was evident really from day one. And he had an immediate impact really.
He loved you boys, like the 2000 grand final and on. I've heard all of your talk. And when we get together and reminisce, that was his group, wasn't it? I mean, you took over the captaincy from Toddy, I think. And then from that moment on, it was your team and it was his team.
How did David Neitz reflect on his relationship with Neale?
Yeah, yeah, no, it was always his team from the start, I think. When he came in and, you know, I'm sure you've reflected that he took us all to school out at Caulfield and really wanted to educate us on how to play the game and, you know, a great educator that he was. And then, you know, when it came to executing, he was pretty fierce and pretty clear on what he wanted to do. But you're right, we sort of were a young team in 2000 We got to the grand final and we didn't get the ultimate success but we had a good team. We gave ourselves plenty of looks in the final series and it built a brilliant relationship with all of our boys. And I guess one that wasn't built on a huge amount of empathy, Gaz, but it was built on mutual respect and absolute clarity and everyone knowing where they sat.
Anita, how did your relationship with him, because you have an interesting relationship when you play a coach, but you and he have become sort of friends over time as well. How did all that play out?
Yeah, well, you know, it wasn't always as straightforward as that, Tim. I do remember I'd been Skipper for a few years and we played a game. I can't remember who it was. And, you know, we had a couple of bad games in a row. And Neil said, get the leadership group, go over and have a chat and work out what's going on and come back to me.
What lessons did Neale Daniher impart on his players?
And I said, Cam Baird said, Neil, we've had a chat and it's just a bit of a pressure cooker environment at the moment, you know. We need to just relax and just move on from this game and just chill out a little bit, you know. It's too tense. And so Neil goes, yep, yep, yep. And then he gets us into the room and just goes through the video and gives everyone the most almighty spray of all time. And I'm not even listening to the spray. I'm going, this bastard, I've had this conversation and he's done exactly the opposite of what I said we needed to do. So after the meeting, I took myself to the gym for a minute or two to cool down, went into Neil's office, and I said, well, mate, what the hell was that?
You know, I just had this chat with you.
How did Neale's coaching style evolve over time?
And he goes, you know what, Nita, you stick to playing. And that was the end of that meeting.
That is magnificent, mate. We're not going to hold you up. We know you've got a fair bit on your plate at the moment. And it is just beautiful to, when you hear those stories, you can understand and get a, and that's what we're doing this morning. We're trying to give people that didn't have the joy of knowing him or in our case, playing under him, just an insight into his personality.
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Chapters
8 chapters
1
What is the significance of Neale Daniher's legacy?
0:00–0:16
2
How did Neale Daniher impact his players during his coaching career?
0:16–0:36
3
What memorable moments stand out from Neale Daniher's coaching?
0:36–1:40
4
How did David Neitz reflect on his relationship with Neale?
1:40–3:12
5
What lessons did Neale Daniher impart on his players?
3:12–3:58
6
How did Neale's coaching style evolve over time?
3:58–5:53
7
What were the challenges faced by Neale Daniher and how did he overcome them?
5:53–8:31
8
What enduring memories do players have of Neale Daniher?
8:31–12:18