The reality is that while each round provides a glimpse of what is to come, ultimately a win or a loss is the only tangible result that survives into the months ahead.
Collingwood fell in by a solitary point against the unfancied Demons, but still all importantly gained their second win and got the valuable four points. Melbourne, despite a gallant performance, still came away without the win. Once the final siren sounds and the game is decided, it is all about stimulating ongoing optimum performance.
A big part of the coaching art is to react to the post-game mood and then set the tone and agenda for the week ahead.
At this time it is always wise for every coach to remind himself that he is not a fan and, despite feeling as a supporter might, resist the temptation to act out of either anger, frustration or euphoria.
The other principle I have always believed in is that the coach should be opposite to the rest of the world. St Kilda thrashed the kangaroos by 104 points. Saints coach Ross Lyon will temper his praise because everyone else is telling the players how good they are. More importantly, North Melbourne coach Brad Scott must lift the sagging morale and belief in his team, which took a big hit so early in the 2010 season.
It was noteworthy and good policy that post-game Scott met his bedraggled and demoralised team before they left the field and walked off amongst his players.
No yelling or screaming. Instead, a calm and controlled leader.
His actions said a thousand words - that he is with them and that they will work through this together.
What Brad said behind closed doors, only club insiders will know. But I would be very surprised if he did not take a caring and supportive approach to start a psychological recovery process after such a heavy loss.
Some fans might like the idea of coaches giving a big losing team a negative fire-and-brimstone spray. However, in my experience, players will react better to a positive attitude, particularly when only two rounds have been played and there are still 20 long weeks to go.
In retrospect, I only wish I had always taken my own advice. Unfortunately the heart will sometimes rule the head despite all logic to the contrary.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
