SACKED St Kilda coach Scott Watters has no regrets over his ill-fated two-year tenure at Seaford, saying the youngsters he blooded as the Saints slipped to 16th last year will be the future of the club.
Watters was dismissed by the Saints last November following a post-season review, despite having a year to run on his contract.
His sacking followed reports of a personality clash with Saints football manager Chris Pelchen and public differences with former CEO Michael Nettlefold early last season about whether the club was rebuilding.
But Watters told News Ltd he was proud of his contribution to the Saints.
"Every decision made was to give the club a future. The players that will run around this year and the next were given the chance to learn their craft over the last couple of years," Watters said.
"They'll keep improving. There are no regrets …"
"I think it's really important as a coach that you aim to build a club that can ultimately compete on the big stage.
"You owe that to your supporters, and I always felt you had to stay really true to those values.
"There are kids who I am really proud of and I think they will be really good players."
Watters nominated Jack Newnes, Jimmy Webster, Tom Hickey, Seb Ross, Tom Lee and Tom Curren as youngsters he expected to repay the Saints' faith in coming seasons.
The former West Coast and Sydney Swans midfielder is adamant he had strong support from his players despite rumours to the contrary either side of his sacking.
"There are some great people in footy and the support has been humbling," Watters said.
"In all honesty the main reason I agreed to make comment is to thank the players whose support has been overwhelming and to thank the Saints supporters who continually approach me.
"They could see the kids we were playing, the nine debutants last year, and the holes we were trying to fill and were incredibly supportive of that direction. I respect the Saints supporters for everything they’ve been through.
Watters said his late 2012 comments about St Kilda being a potential "juggernaut" were misconstrued and had referred to the club's scope to grow off the field.
"The club should be a juggernaut and I don't back away from that description but it needs to be put in context," Watters said.
"At the time of mentioning it, it wasn't about becoming a premiership contender in 12 months. Our list was clearly a developing one.
"But there are an enormous amount of supporters that are yet to be galvanised behind the club. It was a 30,000-member club, and it should be a 50,000-member club."
Watters, 45, said he still harboured ambitions to return to AFL coaching but would take a year off to work in the media this season.
"I'm looking forward to working in the media, both radio and TV, the opportunity to be at every game, a season to analyse," he said.
"I'll also be working within a couple of elite high-performance sporting teams, different codes, seeing how they operate.
"On top of that I'll be mentoring some level three coaches and there's no doubt I will be carrying the water at the under-eights footy with my kids.
"I'm a coach and I'm still passionate about the game, so I'll be preparing myself to get back involved and contribute.
"I would love to come back and support a young coach. I think I have got some experiences."
