Malcolm Blight: After a sound start as an AFL coach, Crows mentor Don Pyke faces the grand test that comes to all coaches
ADELAIDE coach Don Pyke needs to add a more adventurous touch to his arsenal — and find the right answers — as the questions start to be asked about what happened to the Crows’ season, writes dual premiership coach Malcolm Blight.
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DON Pyke came to AFL coaching with a rare treat. He took over a ready made finalist that had ranked fifth as he slipped his feet under a desk at the Adelaide Football Club at the end of 2015.
But the game has not spared Pyke from what gets every coach — that dip into the also-ran category of the AFL bottom-10. This not only challenges the coach on his beliefs, but also the football club in its maturity and nerve.
Pyke signed a two-year contract extension — to the end of 2020 — in the summer when the Crows, just as is the case at every other grand final club, believed they were on the right path and ready to go “one better”.
But history — our greatest guide in this game — tells no coach has a smooth ride with constant improvement and then dominance of the competition. Even the current “most-admired” coach with four flags, Hawthorn master Alastair Clarkson, had to endure a knock from the pedestal after winning his first title in 2008 as the Hawks ranked ninth in 2009.
Some of us can speak with telling experiences of the post-grand final blues. In 1989, Geelong — after not playing in a final for seven seasons — played in one of the greatest grand finals ever, losing to Hawthorn.
We ranked 10th with eight wins from 22 in 1990. What happened? Three things. First, the club enjoyed the pats on the back for finishing second. The later start to the pre-season meant some players did not have injuries repaired as they should have been. And the players — and the coach — inevitably started the new season with an air of satisfaction … grand finals can do that, even losing grand finals.
Pyke's win-loss record at Adelaide is outstanding with a 64.84 per cent winning rate. Only now, for the first time since moving back to Adelaide after being an assistant coach to Neil Craig, is he staring at more losses (eight) than wins (seven) on the premiership table.
It happens to all coaches.
In his first three seasons, Clarkson had a 41 per cent winning rate — and only in his third season did he get the Hawks to a final. Of course, Clarkson — unlike Pyke — took charge of a team that had to be rebuilt from the low depths of the ladder.
History — that great guide — is littered with accounts of coaches who have to be faced with adversity before they succeed. Richmond premiership coach Damien Hardwick was uncertain to keep his job this time last year. Now he is untouchable.
At Geelong, Mark Thompson had to survive the grand review in that nightmarish season of 2006 — that was followed with a drought-breaking premiership in 2007 and sustained success at Kardinia Park.
Even Clarkson had to deal with a savage president, Jeff Kennett, repeatedly wanting to sack him during a run of losses in the 2010 season — after the Hawks had failed to defend the flag in 2009. Some club leaders lose their nerve far too easily.
At Adelaide, Pyke will have to face questions on how he managed the Crows this season. The “what went wrong” questions need to be asked — and answered. Pyke should not fear such a review — and it should be done without self-interest taking precedence at West Lakes.
There are lingering questions to ask about the infamous Gold Coast pre-season camp, the soft-tissue injuries and how Adelaide has dealt with significant challenges this season — all with the aim of learning from the mistakes to ensure they do not happen again.
Pyke has appeared as the modern coach — driven more by process and method than men who have sat in his chair in the past. He has a quiet demeanour. He just needs to add a more adventurous touch to his coaching.
What does the Adelaide board do now that expectation has not been met with a fall to the bottom 10? It is always interesting how boards and club presidents deal with coaches.
In Round 20 last season, Collingwood and North Melbourne met at Etihad Stadium with the theme of the match based on a reunion of the 1977 grand final teams that lived through a replay before the Kangaroos claimed their second flag in three seasons.
Sitting between club presidents Eddie McGuire (Collingwood) and Ben Buckley (North Melbourne), it was inevitable that the pre-game chatter would turn to the decisions they would face with their coaches — Nathan Buckley (Magpies) and Brad Scott (Kangaroos).
Eddie smiled to give the hint he was backing Nathan Buckley who also has benefited from a thorough review of the Collingwood football program. Ben Buckley fully backed Scott noting his record of taking the Kangaroos to consecutive preliminary finals in 2014-15.
The point both presidents were making was that their coaches had been tested under heat — finals pressure — and they could both handle the challenges that come with their tough roles. Both coaches were handed coaching extensions.
Pyke already has his extension. And he has heat at the moment. So how should he handle the next seven weeks?
Don, always go with your best side regardless of the mathematics in the finals equation. If there is a 50-50 call, go with the experienced player. Giving games to kids who do not deserve them is a recipe for bigger problems.
And Don, don’t be afraid of the questions that are to come now. The greater challenge is finding the right answers.
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