FORMER Western Bulldogs coach Brendan McCartney says the club's tough decisions – including the call to move him on – have been vindicated.
Speaking publicly for the first time since his exit from Whitten Oval almost two-and-a-half years ago, McCartney admitted he'd "got some things wrong" towards the end of his tenure.
The blowtorch was on the Bulldogs in October 2014 after skipper Ryan Griffen walked out of the club, citing differences with McCartney, who then resigned because he felt his position was untenable.
The Dogs then engineered a controversial trade that sent Griffen and pick No.6 to Greater Western Sydney in exchange for unproven teenager Tom Boyd, who was signed to a seven-year deal worth a reported $6 million.
McCartney, who has been part of Melbourne's coaching panel for the past two years, revealed he felt some pride in the Bulldogs' remarkable 2016 premiership and heaped praise on his successor Luke Beveridge's regime.
"They won a flag the hardest way possible with just incredible commitment to one another and intensity and it seemed to fuel enormous self belief within them," McCartney told News Corp.
"So, I have nothing but absolute respect for what Luke has done, because clearly he is an outstanding football person and manager of men.
"Yes, there is a sense of pride in that for me, but the club made some decisions (in 2014) and whether you agreed with them or not, they have been proven to be correct.
"I know in my heart that so much was done right (in 2012-14), but I got some things wrong at the end of it, and that's not other people — I got some things wrong.
"So you've got to be man enough to look yourself in the eye and own those mistakes and get to work and that is what I spent the past couple of years doing."
The 56-year-old acknowledged he'd been too stubborn, too stern and not as supportive as he should have been in his final days in charge of the Dogs.
"It was at a time in my life where I was just probably hellbent on doing things and playing a certain way, which made me borderline stubborn and probably overly stern, and abrupt,” McCartney said.
"People would have questioned that I probably wasn’t listening intently enough.
"Previously, I had never shied away from being honest with a player or a team and explaining what I have seen, but it was always coupled with a supportive solution and an investment of time in that player or group.
"It dawned on me that that empathetic side had dropped out of my coaching. And I’m not proud of that."
Brendan McCartney believes the Demons have a bright future ahead. Picture: AFL Photos
McCartney's rebirth at Melbourne had reassured him that he could coach well, and he enthused that his love and passion for the caper was as strong as ever.
He also believes the Demons are building towards something special.
"Melbourne is in a very good place and the future is there to be taken, really," he said.
"(If) they keep doing what they have been doing, at some stage a great opportunity is going to look them in the eye, because it's an incredibly exciting group and they are really good young men.
"But the key is that they are just so competitive and we are just about to get to the stage where they are really competitive with each other.
"In the really good teams that I have been associated with, the midfield training is often more intense than a game. And when you have to start yelling at them to stop absolutely pounding each other, seriously, that is when you know you are on your way.
"We have to stop training and say, ‘Hey boys, that’s enough, the intensity is there, save it for the weekend’."
