SWANSBEST
28th March 2003, 05:53 AM
The ugly duckling
March 28 2003
Nest egg: Swans coach Paul Roos has been given a mandate to sacrifice immediate success and build for the future. Photo: Simon Alekna
The Swans are looking to the future. The talk is of attractive footy and, above all, patience. But how much short-term pain can the club endure for long-term gain? Richard Hinds reports.
Don't think of the Swans as a football team this season. Think of them as a limbo dancer. On the eve of their first home-and-away game, against Carlton, the big question is this: How low can they go?
Or, put another way, in their efforts to create a team that will deliver genuine and sustainable success, how poorly can the Swans afford to perform as they trade youth for experience?
How quickly will the patience of fans, sponsors and, perhaps, even some within the club be tested if the Swans sink to the bottom of the ladder, as many pundits have forecast? And, perhaps most pertinently, how many games can the Swans afford to lose, particularly at home, and still remain viable in a cut-throat sporting market?
"It's a tough question," says coach Paul Roos. "The easiest way to get to the top is to finish at the bottom. StKilda has been down there for three years and had the best [draft] picks but we don't want to manufacture that. The competition is pretty even and a loss or two could make a big difference. But what is too low? Six wins? 10? 11? It's hard to know."
In Roos's favour is the fact that, at least for now, he and the football department have been given a mandate to strive for long-term results.
ll say what I said in front of 600 people at the guernsey presentation," says Swans chairman Richard Colless when asked how bad would be too bad. "The message is very simple. We've told our people to do what they have to to achieve long-term success. Remain uncompromising and we will back you unconditionally."
The Swans must revitalise a playing list that has suffered from both the retirements of veterans Paul Kelly, Andrew Dunkley, Wayne Schwass and Tony Lockett and the decision to trade early draft picks for experienced players in previous seasons.
History proves there is usually only one way to work within a system that rewards the poorly performed - lurch to the foot of the table and rebound as strongly as you can.
But it is much easier to take the plunge with money in the bank. Last year, the Swans lost $1million. They are now facing fierce competition for sponsors from the Rugby World Cup and finding it more difficult to gain media exposure in the face of a resurgent National Rugby League. Can they afford to do the right thing?
The Swans have been freely tipped to win the wooden spoon in the Melbourne media. Given their home-ground advantage and a reasonable run with injuries, a finish somewhere between ninth and 13th would seem more likely. But having dodged the draft for several years in the hope of pinching a premiership while Kelly, Lockett, Schwass and Co were still in red and white, the more pertinent question is whether Sydney's youngsters are good enough to justify the faith that will be shown in them this season.
Given that they seemed to have ridden the great wave of 1996 into a profitable and competitive era, the temptation is to ask how the Swans have got themselves into such a fine mess.
Was former coach Rodney Eade too driven by a desire for short-term success or was he merely following the orders of a board that publicly expressed its high ambitions? Was the club too generous to moderately performed players? Were the finances as tightly monitored as they should have been?
The Swans will start this season with a new chief executive (Colin Seery), a new football director (Andrew Ireland) and a new coach (Roos). Predictably, the answers to those questions depend on whether you talk to one of the host of key performers who have left the club in the past 12 months or those now in charge.
However, more important than pointing the finger is for the Swans to find a way to work their way back up the ladder. Central to the club's plans is Ireland, the former Brisbane Lions chief executive who signed a five-year deal to oversee the Swans' football department after acting as a consultant last year.
Ireland has already seen controversial times at the club during its flirtation with former Western Bulldogs coach Terry Wallace. That move backfired spectacularly.
However, Ireland arrived with a big reputation, having overseen the Lions' successful transition from laughing stock to back-to-back premiers. After six months in Sydney, he believes revitalising the Swans could be an even harder task.
"It was easier at Brisbane to go with an absolute youth policy because we'd just started," says Ireland. "Everyone accepted that we had been given a raw deal when we were established and that it would take some time to turn it around."
Although the expectations in Sydney are greater, Ireland is confident the Swans board will not get cold feet.
"In the practice match at Coffs Harbour [on March 1, when the Swans lost 12.7 (79) to 5.9 (39) to Carlton], we could have played more experienced players and tried to get a win to make things look a bit better but we didn't want to do that," he says. "I think we've got the makings of a very competitive team but we won't compromise what we are doing to build our list and the whole club is pushing that way."
Roos may benefit from the diminished expectations. He signed a three-year contract, whereas most new coaches get just two, largely because of the supporter backlash against the mooted Wallace appointment. That gives Roos time to make his mark, assuming the fans who demanded his appointment remain patient.
"When you're team-building, everyone can get a bit frustrated," says Roos. "But if we are losing and people can still see we are improving and playing an exciting brand of footy, I think they'll stick with us. It's important that we're seen to be having a go and putting in week after week."
"Exciting brand of footy" is a phrase used regularly at the SCG - perhaps in place of "finals". With a forward line that could feature Barry Hall, Michael O'Loughlin, Adam Goodes, Stephen Doyle, Nick Davis, Matthew Nicks and Scott Stevens, the best hope seems to be if the Swans don't win, at least they will play an attractive, high-scoring game. The worst fears are that without the dependable Dunkley and a dearth of key defenders, the opposition will score even more. Roos is more upbeat.
"We've got guys back there like Jason Saddington, Leo Barry, Tadhg Kennelly ... who can run and use the footy," he says. "Again, the signs are that even if we do get beaten, there will be enough highlights to keep people interested." That is an unusual remark for a coach to make - but an honest one. Even the players accept results may be sacrificed this year in order to have a realistic crack at a distant premiership.
"You come to realise it's a privilege to win a premiership, not a right," says new captain Stuart Maxfield. "It takes a lot of good management and luck to get one. It might take us three or four years to get there and that's the message we've been trying to get across."
Will the fans listen? Membership sales have been slow, although Colless says there has been a late surge. Sales of "middle tier" corporate packages (worth between $15,000 and $50,000 each) are still relatively poor, with the blame being put on the Rugby World Cup. Even the employer of one Swans board member has downgraded its AFL sponsorship this year because clients prefer the rugby.
The Swans' answer has been to slash spending and budget for a poor on-field performance. Already about $2.5million has been cut from the football budget and the club's generous player payments are now a target.
Although the Swans are able to spend 15percent more than other clubs as part of their salary-cap concessions, they hope not to use any of that excess this season. There have also been staff cuts and, as Colless puts it: "Some people are getting buses when they used to fly."
"We're not relying on winning a significant number of games," says Colless. "We're no longer relying on having to make the finals. We have a far more conservative business model."
Now it is up to the club to stand firm and the supporters to keep the faith. Only time will tell whether, after a potential season of pain, the Swans will rise again.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/03/27/1048653807019.html
March 28 2003
Nest egg: Swans coach Paul Roos has been given a mandate to sacrifice immediate success and build for the future. Photo: Simon Alekna
The Swans are looking to the future. The talk is of attractive footy and, above all, patience. But how much short-term pain can the club endure for long-term gain? Richard Hinds reports.
Don't think of the Swans as a football team this season. Think of them as a limbo dancer. On the eve of their first home-and-away game, against Carlton, the big question is this: How low can they go?
Or, put another way, in their efforts to create a team that will deliver genuine and sustainable success, how poorly can the Swans afford to perform as they trade youth for experience?
How quickly will the patience of fans, sponsors and, perhaps, even some within the club be tested if the Swans sink to the bottom of the ladder, as many pundits have forecast? And, perhaps most pertinently, how many games can the Swans afford to lose, particularly at home, and still remain viable in a cut-throat sporting market?
"It's a tough question," says coach Paul Roos. "The easiest way to get to the top is to finish at the bottom. StKilda has been down there for three years and had the best [draft] picks but we don't want to manufacture that. The competition is pretty even and a loss or two could make a big difference. But what is too low? Six wins? 10? 11? It's hard to know."
In Roos's favour is the fact that, at least for now, he and the football department have been given a mandate to strive for long-term results.
ll say what I said in front of 600 people at the guernsey presentation," says Swans chairman Richard Colless when asked how bad would be too bad. "The message is very simple. We've told our people to do what they have to to achieve long-term success. Remain uncompromising and we will back you unconditionally."
The Swans must revitalise a playing list that has suffered from both the retirements of veterans Paul Kelly, Andrew Dunkley, Wayne Schwass and Tony Lockett and the decision to trade early draft picks for experienced players in previous seasons.
History proves there is usually only one way to work within a system that rewards the poorly performed - lurch to the foot of the table and rebound as strongly as you can.
But it is much easier to take the plunge with money in the bank. Last year, the Swans lost $1million. They are now facing fierce competition for sponsors from the Rugby World Cup and finding it more difficult to gain media exposure in the face of a resurgent National Rugby League. Can they afford to do the right thing?
The Swans have been freely tipped to win the wooden spoon in the Melbourne media. Given their home-ground advantage and a reasonable run with injuries, a finish somewhere between ninth and 13th would seem more likely. But having dodged the draft for several years in the hope of pinching a premiership while Kelly, Lockett, Schwass and Co were still in red and white, the more pertinent question is whether Sydney's youngsters are good enough to justify the faith that will be shown in them this season.
Given that they seemed to have ridden the great wave of 1996 into a profitable and competitive era, the temptation is to ask how the Swans have got themselves into such a fine mess.
Was former coach Rodney Eade too driven by a desire for short-term success or was he merely following the orders of a board that publicly expressed its high ambitions? Was the club too generous to moderately performed players? Were the finances as tightly monitored as they should have been?
The Swans will start this season with a new chief executive (Colin Seery), a new football director (Andrew Ireland) and a new coach (Roos). Predictably, the answers to those questions depend on whether you talk to one of the host of key performers who have left the club in the past 12 months or those now in charge.
However, more important than pointing the finger is for the Swans to find a way to work their way back up the ladder. Central to the club's plans is Ireland, the former Brisbane Lions chief executive who signed a five-year deal to oversee the Swans' football department after acting as a consultant last year.
Ireland has already seen controversial times at the club during its flirtation with former Western Bulldogs coach Terry Wallace. That move backfired spectacularly.
However, Ireland arrived with a big reputation, having overseen the Lions' successful transition from laughing stock to back-to-back premiers. After six months in Sydney, he believes revitalising the Swans could be an even harder task.
"It was easier at Brisbane to go with an absolute youth policy because we'd just started," says Ireland. "Everyone accepted that we had been given a raw deal when we were established and that it would take some time to turn it around."
Although the expectations in Sydney are greater, Ireland is confident the Swans board will not get cold feet.
"In the practice match at Coffs Harbour [on March 1, when the Swans lost 12.7 (79) to 5.9 (39) to Carlton], we could have played more experienced players and tried to get a win to make things look a bit better but we didn't want to do that," he says. "I think we've got the makings of a very competitive team but we won't compromise what we are doing to build our list and the whole club is pushing that way."
Roos may benefit from the diminished expectations. He signed a three-year contract, whereas most new coaches get just two, largely because of the supporter backlash against the mooted Wallace appointment. That gives Roos time to make his mark, assuming the fans who demanded his appointment remain patient.
"When you're team-building, everyone can get a bit frustrated," says Roos. "But if we are losing and people can still see we are improving and playing an exciting brand of footy, I think they'll stick with us. It's important that we're seen to be having a go and putting in week after week."
"Exciting brand of footy" is a phrase used regularly at the SCG - perhaps in place of "finals". With a forward line that could feature Barry Hall, Michael O'Loughlin, Adam Goodes, Stephen Doyle, Nick Davis, Matthew Nicks and Scott Stevens, the best hope seems to be if the Swans don't win, at least they will play an attractive, high-scoring game. The worst fears are that without the dependable Dunkley and a dearth of key defenders, the opposition will score even more. Roos is more upbeat.
"We've got guys back there like Jason Saddington, Leo Barry, Tadhg Kennelly ... who can run and use the footy," he says. "Again, the signs are that even if we do get beaten, there will be enough highlights to keep people interested." That is an unusual remark for a coach to make - but an honest one. Even the players accept results may be sacrificed this year in order to have a realistic crack at a distant premiership.
"You come to realise it's a privilege to win a premiership, not a right," says new captain Stuart Maxfield. "It takes a lot of good management and luck to get one. It might take us three or four years to get there and that's the message we've been trying to get across."
Will the fans listen? Membership sales have been slow, although Colless says there has been a late surge. Sales of "middle tier" corporate packages (worth between $15,000 and $50,000 each) are still relatively poor, with the blame being put on the Rugby World Cup. Even the employer of one Swans board member has downgraded its AFL sponsorship this year because clients prefer the rugby.
The Swans' answer has been to slash spending and budget for a poor on-field performance. Already about $2.5million has been cut from the football budget and the club's generous player payments are now a target.
Although the Swans are able to spend 15percent more than other clubs as part of their salary-cap concessions, they hope not to use any of that excess this season. There have also been staff cuts and, as Colless puts it: "Some people are getting buses when they used to fly."
"We're not relying on winning a significant number of games," says Colless. "We're no longer relying on having to make the finals. We have a far more conservative business model."
Now it is up to the club to stand firm and the supporters to keep the faith. Only time will tell whether, after a potential season of pain, the Swans will rise again.
http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/03/27/1048653807019.html