Transcript generated automatically by AI and may contain errors.
Chapter 1: What is the main topic discussed in this episode?
It's Stuart Waitley. Thanks for listening to the podcast.
Chapter 2: What topics are introduced in the Eye of the Coach segment?
In this episode, the Eye of the Coach with Adam Simpson, the latest footy news with Sam Edmonds, Strategy 2026 with Brenton Sanderson, and Know Your History, 30 years after the lights went out at Waverley with Shannon Gill. You can get in touch at any time. Waitley at sen.com.au. Thanks for listening. Enjoy.
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Visit Radius.com and enjoy great deals at Hyundai E-Office. On now at participating Hyundai dealers. Thursday morning. This is your town. This is your station. This is Waitly. Good morning. It's a round full of bouts in the right weight divisions, from the battle of the interim coaches to a hot and spicy Q clash.
Rather absurdly, we start with the repeat fixtures in round 13, no less, but they do provide some fascinating reference points. The Bulldog season spiralled from the moment they were thrashed by Hawthorne at Gather Round. A tailspin that threatened their ambition, but three narrow wins in four matches have the Dogs clinging on.
How their measure up against Hawthorne eight weeks on might define where they ultimately sit in the scheme of things. West Coast and Port Adelaide played an early season thriller and the Eagles' position above the power directly correlates to that result. The rematch comes in Perth. And Adelaide nagged away at Geelong on a low-scoring Thursday night in March.
How does it look this time in Adelaide on the first Thursday night of winter? The Crows are refreshed and need to get going. The Cats are clawing to fourth. There's an awful lot at stake. Round 13 is upon us. The full set-up, Strategy 2026 with Brenton Sanderson at 10. It's 30 years since the lights went out at Waverley.
Shannon Gill's Know Your History on a Queen's birthday long weekend game that ran the duration of the long weekend. If you were there, you can share your first-hand accounts. And we start every Thursday through the eye of the coach with Adam Simpson, who's on remote. Simmo, welcome. Morning, Gerard. I'm coming from Perth at the moment.
It's a little bit early in the morning, but that's the ladies over here. I was curious, was the airport painted purple when you arrived? Oh, it's a little bit like that, isn't it?
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Chapter 3: What are the implications of the upcoming matches in Round 13?
If anyone can keep a lid on it, it's just as long as you are. So it's... Yeah, it does remind me a little bit of back in the day, trying to cast my mind back. So, you know, there's a few successful years we had where the state really got behind us. So it's not miles off, I've got to be honest.
I was curious around ā so that was the best ā I hadn't quite realised the full level of silliness that was going on in Perth, which I ā that was silly of me. But that gives a clue as to why Longmire is not indulging any of it. But I loved his approach on 360. So constant conversation with the leadership around what it is to be successful and And fans, you go crazy.
There's no need to keep the lid on as fans. We'll just manage it internally. Yeah, I don't know. Yeah, we're all different. That's what it tells me. And there's probably ā it's the reason why you give these coaches time, Gerard, because there's an argument to say if this is his second or third year as a senior coach, he might not have the same resolve to lead in that way.
So last year I thought they might have just missed a few marks with their messaging early before they'd done anything. I think there was some conversations around we're ready to go and ā
the time's right and that sort of stuff and i'm sure jl would be going no no no don't be saying that just yet so i think the club's aligned that's the first thing that seems to have i think when you look from afar the club is really aligned about the current reality and then um And then there's the leaders themselves. I think they're ready to take on anything.
And they really look like the hunters on the weekend. We spoke about that a few weeks ago. And when you've got that mindset and you've got good availability, you're right. The fans can do what they want. So when you rose in 2015, and so clearly it's even more magnified when it's the Eagles who are on a hot streak. How did you find the intensity of the town? And does it need to be managed?
No, I was my second year, Gerard, so I thought I was the greatest coach in the history of AFL. So it cast my mind back. It was a little bit surreal because I think the perception was we might have been heading south rather than north. So our club did the classic ā And what's our branding theme this year? And they said, oh, here it is. And it's called The West is Ours.
And I've gone, oh, really? And Fremantle are on top of the ladder. They're just playing the grand final. I'm quite sure in football sense, The West is Ours. But anyway, and that sort of... It grew a little bit and then they sort of ā we had a big unity focus that year and then I think they finished with the West is United and that was really cool.
So it was a really good branding piece that we connected with as well. So, yeah, we did ride the wave. We obviously lost the grand final by 10 goals and we weren't quite ready. But once you get in a sweet spot as a club, there is an element of getting out the way. I've said this before. And just letting everything flow for as long as you can without intervening.
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Chapter 4: How do the teams' performances reflect their strategies?
And that's where Geelong's a little bit different. I think they've got their base there, what they're good at. But what's the strategy to beat Adelaide? Is it beat them in the coalface without a legitimate ruckman? Is it run them off their feet? Is it get it on the outside? Is it isolate certain forwards? So that would be the stuff I'm looking at tonight is, you know, what is his strategy?
Sort of work it out by, I reckon, halfway through the second quarter, you go, oh, that's what they're doing. So I'm intrigued by that. And, you know, for Chris and the coaching staff's credit, sometimes when that doesn't work, they can pivot and do something different, whereas I'm seeing a few teams over the course of this year go in with a strategy and It doesn't work.
And then what's our plan B? So I think he's got the balance right between strategy and system. And, yeah, I couldn't tell you what it is to beat the Crows this week. There's no glaring strength for the Crows and there's no glaring weakness. So I'll be intrigued to see what he does. Matthew Nix has got a little bit of the Adam Kingsleys about him. It's all positive coming off the bye.
It's all positive. It's going to sort itself out soon. Last year, this is when they did sharpen up. They went nine in a row off the bye, which there'd be two aspects. Don't let negativity in the door as you start to make your run and live the delusion while you're at it. Yeah, we do anything you can to try and get that form going, and they just haven't got it going. So what's your theme?
Is it us against them? Is it we know what we're doing? We can see these numbers are getting better every week. Unfortunately, if you're a senior coach, you've got to sell. You've got to sell belief sometimes. Sometimes it's without evidence. So I think he would have gone in with a real positive attitude. Win, lose or draw, he'll probably keep that.
But if I lose the next couple, Gerard, then he's probably thinking about his job. So I think there's more to it than just being positive. I think there's a strategy behind it. And then when you don't play on the weekend, anyone out there in your league, if you have a bye, you always feel better coming into the next round. I mean, even the Suns with that...
horrendous loss against north they go into brisbane probably forgetting about that game a fair bit and uh you know going into the next 10 weeks with a positive attitude it's just how long it lasts yes so phil thorpe out ranking out coming didn't come up archie has been named they they do have they do have their personnel issues as well as their their form issues
Yeah, well, how much are we going to rely on Walker? I mean, he's meant to be just filling in the, you know, the twilight of his career. But I feel like if he's the one, if he gets off the chain, then there's a chance, you know. So I'm not sure if that's fair on him to, you know, obviously play in the reserves on the weekend. He sort of took a hanger too.
Yeah.
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Chapter 5: What are the key factors for the Crows to succeed against the Cats?
We train it a lot. A McGovern type, he's probably two men. He could play like and defend two players. The traditional defender, can you be a one-and-a-half-man player? And that means beat your man but also be willing to support others.
And that's a ā yeah, so you had it in McGovern as you showed us the Tom Stewart clips from the Brisbane game where he could play on two at once through instinct and being able to move. Yeah, he's two-and-a-half men. Those guys, they're ā they're next level when they can not only, they just guard space and they guard where the ball's going. Whereas most mortals will have a direct opponent.
Okay, the ball's going there. I'm willing to leave my direct opponent to support the next contest and knowing that if I leave mine, man, someone might come and replace my role as well. So it's all about being connected as a defence and one and a half men is critical for the defenders. The culture check.
So Sunday night, rather perfectly, has Essendon and Carlton playing the battle of the interim coaches. And you've kept tabs here, obviously, with Josh Fraser throughout and then the day-to-day for Dean Solomon as he gets his feet under the desk. So give us a bit more on what you think is going on at the Blues with Josh through this first month. Well, I'm working with Josh a little bit.
And not to say I'm going to give any state secrets away, but... I don't think it's been a revolution game plan change, Gerard, and I think he's openly admitted that as well. You get the sense the players have really freed themselves up mentally, which for whatever reason, it's been holding them back a little bit, the whole narrative around Carlton.
So there's the one piece to go, okay, there's some freshness amongst the group, but what do you do? from a delivery point of view on game day and how do you actually play to win. So I think they found that balance really well. What I'm intrigued more on is what are these interim coaches doing day-to-day with their players when there's so long to go?
And they'll be looking, like Dean Solomon's saying, they're looking at these interim coaches going, well... You're not really my coach, but I'll buy into a degree. So the ability for an interim coach to get that buy-in, it's such a big challenge. It's like the old substitute teacher.
You would have been still sitting at the front of the class doing your thing, but most of us go, well, you start giving out fake names in the roll call. You start doing things. where you take the mickey a little bit. And I just wonder how well they're going. I get the feeling from Carlton's point of view anyway that there's been complete buy-in to the system regardless of the coach.
And then, of course, his messaging and how he's delivering himself publicly has been A1, but also behind the closed doors with his players. So that's an intriguing element. And Dave Solomon... What's his brief? What's his brief this year? Because there's so long to go and there's a lot of noise on the outside, but that's okay. That happens. So what does he do with the players?
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Chapter 6: What challenges does Geelong face after their recent loss?
Jeremy Cameron also kicked four goals. So their four best players all played really well and the Cats still lost. So they just need a bigger output from the entire 22. They can't just keep relying on their four biggest stars to try and drag them across the line. And I think that's what Chris Scott will be pushing for tonight.
Give us 22 players in role and we should be good enough to beat the Crows. What are you thinking? I think Geelong, I think the Cats will win this one. Big game for the Crows. It is. After the bye and that poor game against Hawthorne, they've really got to get going. All right, that's the set-up for Thursday night footy. We'll switch to Friday night Hawthorne and the Western Bulldogs next.
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When we played it was the first week that Tim had missed.
Chapter 7: What are the key strengths of the Western Bulldogs and Hawthorne?
He's obviously missed some other games since then so they've had some changes to their side and now that he's back they're obviously a super potent team. They've played some really good footy, they've won a lot of close games in particular so we know And that when it gets, we'll do a little bit of scenario training today. And they're a really quality outfit.
They've got a lot of their best players back playing. When we played them last time, they had a couple of outs. So we're going to have to play really well against the Dogs. We've scouted them. We've done our oppo scouting this morning. And David Hale put a pretty good picture together of what we think they're going to bring.
we know we're going to have to be at our best because their best is very, very good. Sam Mitchell, the Hawthorne coach. So when they met the dogs at Gather Round, that was Tim English's first absence. The dogs spiralled from there. Sort of Hawthorne to Hawthorne is the spread here. How do the dogs stack up against the Hawks tomorrow night?
We'll get Brenton Sanderson to give us the strategy for Friday night footy just before we do.
Chapter 8: What tactical advantages does Sam Mitchell seek against the Bulldogs?
For Maccas, world menu heist has arrived. Let's join Nathan in the newsroom. Nath, thank you. Sando, Hawks and Bulldogs. Who's the stronger team? Well, Bulldogs first. Their best footy still remains elite, especially when they've got their best players and they're executing their roles.
I just think they're so dangerous and they do rely so much on their star power through the midfield and their speed ahead of the ball. It's still that vulnerability defensively that is their biggest concern, but they've battled pretty well through injuries and get some inconsistency in some different areas. But
Yeah, I still think Luke Beveridge's side is still capable of beating anyone when their contest game is functioning really well. And then you look at the Hawks, elite ball movement, great pressure, intercept marking, corridor transition. Their form line's really impressive.
Outside of that opening round loss to GWS and a couple of little hiccups along the way, they're just building really great momentum. They're a really strong defensive team. They're aggressive. when they attack.
And as you mentioned, Gerard, their win over the Bulldogs earlier in the year at Gather Round, in particular, that was significant because they sliced through the Bulldogs' defence that night. So that would be the game that the Bulldogs will be watching.
Last time they beat us, this is what they did really well, and that's how they're going to try and overcome that and get a different result this time. What are Hawthorne's major strengths strategically? Well, strategically, they're such a good intercept team. You can't blast it in there. And then when they do win the ball in their back half, their rebound 50 transition is really strong.
And they come through the corridor. Their corridor usage is excellent. They're one of the most efficient sides with their connection inside forward 50. We've seen what they're doing with Gunston at the moment. Those high forwards empty out and leave that big gap for Gunston to lead into. And there's been bits of hard wick over the last couple of weeks as well.
And what I love about their forwards, I just think they've got that appetite for defense as well. So they love kicking goals. We see them celebrate and they celebrate with the crowd and each other. They really are enjoying their footy. But what I love about those Hawthorne high forwards is they tackle and they've got great defensive values as well.
They're averaging close to 100 points a game, Hawthorne. So their offense is good and they're conceding only 85. So they've got a really good balance. at the moment. And I also think they're flexible. So I mentioned about Hardwick. I just think they've got players that can play multiple roles at both ends of the ground, you know, throw Sicily into that as well. They're just so adaptable.
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