AFL 2021: Brett Ratten open up at St Kilda members forum

High-priced recruit Brad Hill was close to being dropped by St Kilda earlier this year, a concession the club made during a forum with frustrated members.

St Kilda Intra-Club Practice Match at Moorabbin. Seb ross. Pic: Michael Klein

St Kilda coach Brett Ratten has drawn on his own tragic experiences to highlight how family, not football, comes first.

Speaking about the furore which has engulfed the Saints over Seb Ross and Tim Membrey missing last Saturday’s game against Adelaide to return home to Melbourne for family reasons, Ratten was adamant the pair had his full support.

It’s been reported senior figures at Moorabbin weren’t impressed with the players missing the season-defining clash with CEO Matt Finnis admitting the issue had been debated among management.

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DEEP DIVE: WHO WILL BE FALL GUY FOR SAINTS STRUGGLES?

But Ratten, who tragically lost his son Cooper in a car accident in 2015, was passionate in his support of Ross, whose wife had just had newborn twins, and Membrey, whose wife is soon to give birth.

“In my time at the football club there has been history littered with family first or the person first (decisions), that is the most critical thing,” he said.

“Paddy (Ryder) went home for personal reasons and we supported that 100 per cent. With Seb and Tim, they are not easy decisions, they are torn apart between their family and football, they love this footy club and they love their family.

“They need to make the decision which is best for them and their family.

“Having gone through personal things myself, family is first and if you need to be there, you need to be there and we support that 100 per cent.

“It will be great to have Seb and Tim back next week against the Tigers but we support anything they want to do from a family sense.

“Anyone in our program if there is something they need to do for their family that comes first.”

Brett Ratten said family would always come first at the Saints.

Ratten was speaking on an online St Kilda members mid-season forum alongside chief operating officer Simon Lethlean and head of football David Rath.

The anger from the members was obvious with the trio forced to answer some pointed questions about the team’s disappointing performances.

High on the list was the recruitment of ex-Swan Dan Hannebery on big money for a return of just 13 games in two years.

“The two-and-a-half years we have had with Dan so far we haven’t got the output we expected,” Lethlean said.

“In 2018 we took the view that being aggressive and taking a risk was the right thing to do for the attributes that Dan would bring to us.

“We really hope we see some of it across the next year-and-a-half but at this stage it is certainly an uphill battle for him and we’re working hard to support him.”

On another high-priced recruit Brad Hill, Ratten revealed he would have been dropped earlier in the year but was saved by injuries to other players.

“The art of coaching is about supporting a player when they have a lack of confidence and are down on form and backing them until you get to the point where that’s enough and they go back and play in the VFL,” Ratten said.

“We have done that this year with Nick Coffield. Bradley Hill, and a few others, were close to that conversation but because of our availability with injury some of those decisions were taken away from us.

“One week we had some changes then on the Thursday we got a few more injuries and we had to change on the run and put some of the players back in the team.

“There would have been some changes if we had a healthy list.”

On a positive note ruckman Rowan Marshall is expected to get through training on Saturday and put his hand up to play against Richmond next Friday night.

ROSS REVEALS WHY FAMILY HAD TO COME FIRST

Rebecca Williams

St Kilda midfielder Seb Ross has broken his silence on the war of words that erupted over his choice to put family ahead of football.

Responding to criticism over his decision to return to Melbourne to be with his wife and newborn twins ahead of last weekend’s match against Adelaide in Cairns, Ross said he had been torn between “my club obligations and my family obligations”.

As the spotlight on the Saints intensified after the club’s loss to the Crows, Ross said he had never wanted to create an unnecessary distraction for the club.

Ross and Saints forward Tim Membrey, whose wife is soon due to give birth, both made the decision to leave the group for family reasons.

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Seb Ross looks to get a handball away in the clash with Sydney at the SCG. Picture: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images)

Dual Saints best-and-fairest Ross explained his position in a statement on Wednesday night, saying the furore had been tough on his family.

“On behalf of myself and my family, I wanted to address some of the commentary around my decision to head home following the Sydney game,” Ross said in a statement.

“This was never meant to be about me, and the last few days have not only been tough on my family, but also an unnecessary distraction for the footy club I love.

“When we were told we would be staying in Sydney longer than originally planned, I made the decision to go home and support my wife and our three young children with the intention — and hope — that I could apply for a border exemption and return in time to face Adelaide.

“When the team was eventually granted a fly-in, fly-out exemption to Queensland the Thursday before the game, my chances of joining them faded.

“But I always knew the risk.

“Although I was torn between my club obligations and my family obligations, it was a risk I was willing to take. I knew I needed to be at home to help my wife Marnie with our five-week old twin boys Vinny and Henley and daughter Charlotte.

“This was never meant to be about me honouring my commitment to the St Kilda Football Club – the club that I’m committed to and am proud and passionate to represent. This was simply me supporting what I cherished most, my family.”

St Kilda chief executive Matt Finnis admitted on Wednesday senior figures at the club had debated the decision by the two players to choose family over playing football, but ultimately

supported Ross and Membrey.

The issue became inflamed when Footy Classified’s Caroline Wilson questioned the decision to allow the Saints’ pair to return home, saying “supporters and sponsors and members and other teammates would have every right to be a bit disappointed.”

Ross thanked coach Brett Ratten and the club for supporting his decision.

“Thank you to Ratts and the club for allowing me to explore every option with respect to playing or leaving and then supporting me when my decision was made,” Ross said.

“I also want to take this opportunity to thank our truly loyal St Kilda fans and supporters and those within the wider AFL community for your heartfelt support over the last few days.

“To that end, I can’t wait to run out there alongside the boys when we take on the Tigers and I hope you’ll be cheering us on.”

St Kilda assistant coach Jarryd Roughead said the Saints would have had a better chance of defeating the Crows if Ross and Membrey had played but the club supported the decision.

“We would probably be a better chance of them winning, yeah,” Roughead told AFL 360.

“But their decision was to go home and we support that.”

Asked if all the teammates supported the decision, Roughead said: “Well, I mean it’s a bit like match committee, you have it thrown up at times where some people don’t agree and some do but at the end of the day when the decision is made you can’t really go back on supporting that decision and that’s what we did.”

Former Saints coach Ross Lyon has weighed into saga at his old club.

Former St Kilda coach Ross Lyon said the whole Ross situation could have been avoided with some more forward-planning by the Saints.

“Seb Ross’ wife was clearly pregnant … so the bridges and support should have been put in place so then it’s future setting,” Lyon said on Footy Classified.

“So then when you come across it you are not derailed. He doesn’t think ‘I have to go home for support’ because there has been relationships established, support, clear, get the resources.

“Get it established in February and build it along … I think it could have been circumvented with strong forward-planning.

“If I was coaching, that’s what you would be doing in January and February — what can derail us. It happened last year with (Jake) Carlisle, get ahead of the problem and then Seb Ross doesn’t have to make a decision, it’s already made, he feels comfortable.”

Lyon also took aim at the AFL Players’ Association for not providing more support.

“To me the AFLPA are reactionary, they know this was an issue last year, this is happening often, what support and how are they integrating with clubs?,” Lyon said.

“And aligning their resources — I think they get millions and millions of dollars – what have they allocated to players’ partners in the context of Covid and being left behind and are they ringing clubs and saying ‘This is what’s happening, how can we help?’.

Originally published as AFL 2021: Brett Ratten open up at St Kilda members forum