New Western Bulldogs captain Easton Wood on the ‘little things’ that can make the Dogs big again
ALLEGATIONS of excessive partying, a lack of hunger and injuries derailed the Bulldogs’ premiership defence. But Easton Wood says the slate has been wiped clean at the kennel.
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IT MAY have been the biggest fall by a premier since 2009, but Easton Wood believes the little things can restore the Western Bulldogs to premiership-winning form.
The Dogs’ new captain, who praised Bob Murphy but vowed to lead the team his way, said he would help strip everything back at the kennel in a bid to recapture the magic of 2016.
The Bulldogs became the first team since Hawthorn eight years earlier to miss the finals 12 months after winning the flag, with allegations of excessive partying and a lack of hunger aimed at a club also beset by injuries.
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But Wood said he and his teammates had wiped the slate clean as they embarked on another pre-season and believed the “knowing” that comes only after winning a premiership would hold them in good stead.
“We’re going to focus more on attention to detail stuff,” Wood told the Herald Sun.
“I think the little things, as much as they might not appear to be significant, they add up. At our best we get the little things right and that builds momentum and that overwhelms teams.
“But that also translates to stuff off the park, whether it’s picking up your towel in the locker room and keeping it tidy.
“I’m a believer in the little things. That’s my role as captain, to drive that stuff so that on game day it becomes second nature and you don’t have to remind guys.”
Tom Liberatore’s preparation and Jake Stringer’s private life became the storylines of a 2017 campaign that never got going, while Tom Boyd was unable to use his 2016 Grand Final heroics as a launching pad and later suffered from depression.
An interim premiership captain in 2016, Wood steps back into the leader’s hot seat with Murphy and Matthew Boyd having since retired, Travis Cloke’s recruitment deemed a failure and leading goalkicker of the last three years Stringer traded to Essendon for two second-round picks.
“I don’t know if I’m coming in at a delicate time, but certainly we underperformed last year so I guess at the moment it’s exciting that the slate has been wiped clean and we’ve got a new opportunity and a new season ahead of us,” Wood said.
“I think the only way I can do it (captaincy) is to do it my way. I was definitely fortunate to have learnt under Bob and he’s got some amazing qualities and did the job amazingly well. I’m aware I’ve got big shoes to fill there, but at the same time I don’t think it would be fair to the group to try and emulate what he did.
“It’s really special to be able to take the role. I absolutely love the club and I guess it’s where I’ve grown up having been drafted here as an 18-year-old.”
Asked if the side had this year lost the hunger and intensity that was its hallmark in breaking a 62-year premiership drought 12 months earlier, Wood said: “It’s hard to know. It’s hard to pinpoint one thing, but definitely we didn’t perform to the standard we wanted to.
“It was definitely disappointing. We’ve had injuries before and managed to cope with them, but probably what we lacked was that even contribution from No.1 down to No.22.
“When we’ve been at our best that was our trademark and we have to find a way to get back to that and get the boys back to playing their best footy.”
Wood said there had been little discussion about what went wrong this year.
“It’s definitely not searching (for answers). We’re a group who tries to focus as much as we can to be in the moment,” he said.
“That’s when you’re at your most effective, so it’s not looking too far back and at the same time not looking too far forward. The best thing about pre-season is you don’t have the pressure, there’s no games, no jostling for positions and no win-loss on the weekend, so it’s actually a time where you can just enjoy the hard work and getting fit.”
It will be a case of new Dogs and — potentially — new tricks at either end of the ground in 2018. A fit-again Marcus Adams and new recruits Jackson Trengove loom as valuable additions to a backline exposed by the competition’s power forwards this year. In the attacking half, new leadership group member Jack Redpath, youngster Josh Schache and Boyd could present match-up problems for rival defences.
Yet the nucleus of the side that shocked the competition in 2016 remains intact — a fact that Wood said shouldn’t be underestimated.
“There’s definitely that element of knowing in the group. That’s valuable,” he said.
“You feel that at different times on the field, probably particularly when you’re down. You know that if we just stick to what we know we’ll be a chance to get the game back on our terms.
“I know we didn’t play our best footy last season, but I think that was still present and we still fought it out. Things didn’t go our way and we could have done things better, but guys were trying right to the end.”
Strong relationships, a shared goal and team spirit were also at the top of Wood’s captaincy to-do list.
“Relationships are super important. You can’t ever give anyone feedback and hope for it to be successful if you don’t have a relationship,” he said.
“If you ask someone to do something their first question is why. If you’ve got a genuine relationship with someone and they know you’re coming from the angle that you want the best for them and the team, they’re more likely to jump on board.”
But while Richmond coach Damien Hardwick famously predicted a “quick bounce” ahead of the Tigers’ against-the-odds 2017 premiership, Wood was making no such prediction.
“In terms of what we can get to next year, we’ve never had a focus, even when we were successful in 2016, on winning the ultimate. Although that’s the goal every team has, our focus is always on how good can we be,” he said.
“We just need to be us. I think if we can gel together and find out what our best is, it will be more than enough.”
EASTON WOOD ON ...
TOM LIBERATORE: “We all know that each player at different stages of their career have their challenges and Libba’s was last season. He obviously struggled to find the form he’s shown for years previous. That’s going to be his challenge — to get back. But the positive thing is he knows he’s capable, we’ve just got to support him and help him back there.”
JAKE STRINGER: “Players are pretty oblivious to what list management is doing so I guess there was that element of surprise (he was traded). I wish ‘Jakey’ all the best, hopefully he’s learned a few things from it and he can put his best foot forward.”
TOM BOYD: “Last year was a real challenge for him. I’ve never had to deal with any mental health issues so it’s really hard to see a mate go through that and you can only be there for them and hope they get the support to come out of it. It’s a long road with that stuff ... it might be something you have to deal with for the rest of your life. But hopefully Tommy has found a way; he certainly seems like he’s improved a lot and I really hope for his sake that he’s happy and that he can play some good footy.”
THE FORWARD LINE: “I’m completely unsure what it will be in Round 1 and it will probably be different again half way through the year. Jack Redpath coming back in and joining the leadership group is a fantastic addition; he’s got a really strong voice and trains as well as anyone. Josh Schache has got a lot of potential and hopefully we can get the best out of him down here because he looks like he’s gonna be a good player for a long time.”
THE BACKLINE: “Jackson Trengove ... I’d definitely be happy with him next to me down back. He’s a real fighter, which is something you need down there. Marcus Adams isn’t far from getting back and he’s definitely a force when he’s at full fitness. That’s why we call him ‘The Specimen’.”
Originally published as New Western Bulldogs captain Easton Wood on the ‘little things’ that can make the Dogs big again