Demons star’s scathing character reference for former coach

A Demons star has given a damning character reference for former coach Ross Lyon in a clear warning for rivals Carlton.

Ed Langdon didn't miss with his comments on former coach Ross Lyon.

Melbourne wingman Ed Langdon has delivered some choice words to former coach Ross Lyon, who is the hot favourite to take over at Carlton.

Langdon was victorious in his first AFL finals appearance on Saturday night, helping the Demons to a 33-point win over Brisbane in his second year at the club.

It follows five seasons at Fremantle, all of them under Lyon. Langdon requested a trade to Melbourne after the 2019 season.

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Asked about the coaching of Simon Goodwin after the qualifying final, Langdon was surprisingly frank about the likely next Blues coach “yelling” at players who don’t “look him in the eye” at meetings.

“I’ve come from five years of the Ross Lyon method, so it’s absolutely a nice change to have someone as cool, calm and collected as Goody,” Langdon said on AFL Nation.

“I don’t think I’ve heard him raise his voice since I’ve been at the club.

“Coming over from Freo, where if you don’t look Ross in the eye at a meeting, he starts yelling at you, so it’s been a nice change.”

Asked again if Lyon yells, Langdon laughed and said “just a little”.

St Kilda champion Nick Dal Santo said he was happy to see a player speaking openly but didn’t feel the same way from his time under Lyon.

“Ed Langdon and Ross Lyon are big boys, and they can deal with this. That’s perfectly fine,” he said on Fox Footy’s The First Crack.

“I’m a little bit surprised Ed Langdon felt that way; that was never my experience, or rarely my experience with Ross.

“I looked him in the eye, and maybe it’s a changing of the eras, where the way Ross spoke to us at St Kilda I know was different to the way he spoke to the guys at Fremantle, knowing a few of those guys personally. We’d share stories ‘no no, he never did that with us’, ‘OK, he has evolved’.

“This is not to defend Ross, but I think there’s a bit of a perception that he’s heavy-handed; he’s not that. What he did for us a group, he changed us. I’ve got no issue with (Langdon saying) that.

“Surely he was just trying to highlight how good Goody is, and he’s used the previous experience as an example?”

Ed Langdon spent five years at Fremantle. (AAP Image/Julian Smith)

Lyon has coached 305 matches, with three combined Grand Final appearances across five seasons at St Kilda and eight years at Fremantle.

With Alastair Clarkson pulling out of the race and David Teague officially sacked late last week, Lyon is likely to become the next coach at Carlton.

Originally published as Demons star’s scathing character reference for former coach