Ryan O’Keefe vows to bring Sydney’s famed Bloods culture to Adelaide Crows
NEW Adelaide development coach Ryan O’Keefe says he wants to bring some of Sydney’s famous Bloods culture to the Crows.
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RYAN O’Keefe says he wants to bring some of Sydney’s famed Bloods culture to Adelaide.
The man who won two premierships and a Norm Smith Medal with the Swans and was at the respected club when it introduced player-driven values in the early 2000s, said he hoped to pass on to the Crows some of the cultural traits which have made Sydney so successful in the past decade.
“Basically we knew what we wanted to stand for, what we did stand for, and everyone — from players to all staff — pushed towards that,’’ O’Keefe said of the Swans as he was officially unveiled as Adelaide development coach on Wednesday.
“We didn’t accept anything outside that. That’s the same philosophy we want to have here, it’s what Phil (new coach Phil Walsh) wants, to have elite standards in all aspects of the club.
“You’ve got to have very high standards and not accept anything below that. And you’ve got to do it together because it’s all about the team, not about individuals.’’
O’Keefe said Walsh’s team-first mentality “resonated’’ with him and lured him to West Lakes when he had offers to coach and play at other AFL clubs.
O’Keefe, who played 286 games and kicked 261 goals in a decorated career with the Swans from 2000-14, admitted he first had talks with Adelaide while the axed Brenton Sanderson was still in charge.
But he said he committed to the club because of Walsh’s coaching philosophy.
“With Phil coming on it was really exciting and I liked what the club stood for,” O’Keefe, 33, said.
“He was all about the team, having a team-first mentality, having elite standards and a good work rate and all that sort of stuff resonated with me and how my career was.
“That’s something I think all elite clubs need to be like. The team thing is the major thing.
“You have to do it as a unit, as a team, and it’s not just the 22 who play on the weekend. You have to do it as a whole list, a whole club, everyone needs to be pulling in the same direction.
“It’s a brutal game, it’s tough, very competitive and good teams do it really well. That’s why you have to set the standards and bar really high.
“That whole (team-first) philosophy is probably the key point for a good side.’’
O’Keefe, who also will assist with Adelaide’s midfield group, said he was yet to pick apart the Crows list but doesn’t believe “drastic’’ changes need to be made after they missed the finals by just one game this year.
“But there’s always room for improvement,’’ he said.
“You’ve always got to look to get better, get wins and play finals and we didn’t do that this year.’’
O’Keefe will start his coaching journey with the Crows on November 17.
‘I COULD’VE PLAYED ON’
O’Keefe has revealed he knocked back opportunities to extend his playing career for a 16th season next year.
“I could have (played on),’’ he said, adding there were one-year deals on the table for him from clubs he wouldn’t name.
“It was something I had to weigh up. But I think the opportunity here (as a development coach at Adelaide) was good, I really liked it, and I had to sort of think beyond 12 months.
“The body’s fine, I still love playing, but I thought this was a great opportunity and I didn’t want it to pass.
“I wanted to get into coaching, I had to think long-term and I’m really glad I made the decision.”
O’Keefe retired after a tough final season with Sydney where he played just the opening four matches before falling out of favour with coach John Longmire.
He had a taste of coaching with Sydney this year, where he combined playing with development work.
While rejecting the chance to play on, O’Keefe said he also had assistant coaching offers from several clubs before choosing Adelaide.
“I’m really looking forward to working under Phil (Crows coach Phil Walsh) because I think he will be a great mentor,’’ O’Keefe said.
O’Keefe will work closely with Adelaide’s midfield and knows he has plenty of talent at his disposal, including guns Patrick Dangerfield, Rory Sloane and veteran Scott Thompson and the emerging Brad and Matt Crouch.
“Regardless of what individuals you’ve got in your midfield or in your team it’s about doing it as a unit,’’ he said.
“One or two players aren’t going to beat a quality unit, so that is something we are really going to hone in on and make sure that regardless of what personnel you’ve got you have a really strong unit, everyone knows what they are doing and everyone plays their role.’’
O’Keefe said he harbours no ill feelings towards the Swans, despite ending his career on a sour note and being overlooked for their grand final team.
“It (the last year) was difficult, especially watching the guys make a grand final ,’’ he said.
“But the Swans have made me the person I am today and if it wasn’t for the Swans I probably wouldn’t be sitting here (at Adelaide) right now.’’
Originally published as Ryan O’Keefe vows to bring Sydney’s famed Bloods culture to Adelaide Crows
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