Ex-St Kilda coach Grant Thomas has urged the Saints to be bold in search of next coach

Grant Thomas says he will take no joy in Alan Richardson’s inevitable departure from St Kilda but says “breakthrough performance only comes from outstanding individuals” and wants the Saints to get one at any cost.

Grant Thomas says St Kilda must be bold when it goes hunting for its next coach.

Grant Thomas has urged St Kilda to “get into the game” with an “outrageously brave” $2 million offer for a premiership coach if they sack Alan Richardson in coming months.

The man who took St Kilda to a trio of finals appearances will be passed on 123 games coached at the club by Richardson against Richmond this weekend.

He would take no joy in Richardson’s sacking, but believes St Kilda needs a coaching titan who smacks of leadership and ambition rather than another development coach.

Thomas yesterday said the coaching model that saw an EPL-style general manager with a tactical master underneath him could easily be adopted by St Kilda and Carlton.

Grant Thomas says St Kilda must be bold when it goes hunting for its next coach.

But the Herald Sun the Saints had to find a way to lure one of the AFL’s best coaches at any cost.

“I would love St Kilda to make a statement and get Alastair Clarkson or whoever is in the business, just go out and get him. I don’t care if it cost a million dollars more than it is supposed to,” he said.

“I just hope St Kilda bites the bullet and makes a really outrageously brave decision and stop all this crap and put us on a pathway to where we haven’t been for so long. It’s just been too long. The time is now, we have got to do it.

Thomas says he’d love to see the Saints poach Hawks coach Alastair Clarkson. Picture: AAP

“So if you pay someone two million a year instead of a million a year, you would get that back by way of a premiership and members and fan support. We need to stop wallowing around and trialling people. The formula is wrong and apart from the fact coaches are learning on the job players’ careers are compromised during the learning process.”

Thomas believes Richardson has elite development capabilities but holds firm to the view senior coaches need a mix of corporate CEO and leader of men.

“I have had a couple of meetings with him and I think internally he would be tormenting himself, he would feel under extreme pressure wondering what he can do to turn it around

He would be hoping for another chance,” Thomas said.

Will the Saints move on from Alan Richardson? Picture: AAP

“It’s not to discredit Richo because he’s one of the very best development coaches the game has seen but it’s a mismatch of trying to turn assistant coaches into coaches.

“He should still be carving out a career as a development coach, who can be as important as a senior coach.

“If I was in charge of St Kilda I would know what I would do and it’s up to them to make up their mind. He has been there six years and they haven’t played a final and he should be reasonably proud of what they have done but in this brutal environment you need to deliver breakthrough performances and it’s been business as usual.

“Breakthrough performance is only achieved with outstanding individuals and the footy club needs to source one.”

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