As it turned out, the coin toss went Thompson’s way. And in the 83 games Geelong has played since this time it has lost only 10. Would this almost unprecedented period of dominance have been derailed by a change of coach? My genuine belief is that it would. A new coach would have brought changes to the playing list, support staff, game style and, essentially, the spirit of the whole group.
Geelong again finds itself on top of the ladder approaching the halfway mark of the season and deserves to be outright favourites for the flag. To win the 2010 premiership, alongside their victories in 2007 and 2009, would place them among the greatest teams of all time. Comparisons will obviously be made to the triple-premiership winning Brisbane Lions that played 101 games between 2001 and 2004 for 75 wins, 25 losses and one draw. As dominant and powerful as the Lions were, the Cats’ ability to turn up and get the job done, week in week out, is possibly more impressive.
Looking back now it’s unbelievable to think how close it was to being unravelled before it even got started!
Feedback in AFL football is something you get whether you like it or not. Players receive it from the coach, from teammates, the media, supporters, family, even in the street from someone you’ve never met before. Coaches too are likely to get feedback from players and assistants. It’s positive and it’s negative. It’s confronting. And if you stay in the system long enough, you begin to crave feedback. You come to realise that in order to get the most out of your ability, it helps to know exactly what your peers think of you.
The feedback the Geelong players were getting in the lead-up to the 2007 season was particularly honest and brutal. Gary Ablett was challenged to be the best player in the competition. His mates told him he needed to cope more and complain less about niggling injuries. He was told that his work ethic was inconsistent but that if he could get it together, no one in the competition would get anywhere near him.
Matthew Scarlett was already a dual All-Australian, a best-and-fairest winner and an influential senior player. The group pointed out that they were not happy with the way he ran his own race. They wanted him to engage with the team more. He was told to pull his head in off the field. Scarlett’s mates also felt that he was capable of having more influence over the team’s performance than anyone else.
Steve Johnson’s arrest for public drunkenness provided the team with the opportunity to make a strong public statement. His seven-week suspension from senior football was considered exceptionally harsh at the time. Johnson understood very clearly that if his behaviour didn’t change his career at Geelong was over. As we know, Stevie J went on to win the Norm Smith Medal, gain All-Australian honours in 2007-08 and is a dual premiership player. The ‘Johnson model’ is often referred to by other clubs as best practice in handling off-field indiscretions.
Bomber Thompson’s side walks to the beat of its own drum. When being interrogated recently as to how he could allow Gary Ablett to get away unpunished for not attending a game when he was injured, his answer was classic Geelong: “I didn’t bother to turn up to games when I was injured. It’s not a big deal.”
For most people, the thought of getting feedback from a room full of your peers is about as frightening as it gets. But the alternative of not being aware of the things that can make you better will, in the end, be more destructive.
The savage review Geelong undertook in 2006 nearly cost Mark Thompson his job. Perhaps his ability to take that feedback on board has been the catalyst for unleashing one of the greatest teams we have ever seen.
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL.
