Great Footballers, failed Coaches

[wolftone57]

There have been many star footballers that went on to coach at the highest level. Some of them like Leigh Matthews and Malcolm Blight were very successful but there are many that were flops. This is on their records only not on any perception.

Matty Primus (13 wins at Port from 51)

Alex Jesaulenko (they don't take failure very well at Carlton and he failed to make the finals two years running. The fact is Jezza resigned due to a board spill but he also failed at the Saints too winning only 13 from 64)

Brett Ratten (6 seasons with Carlton for 4 finals and one win)

Michael Voss (5 seasons with Brisbane 39 from 102),

Peter Knights (36 wins from 104 games with Brisbane & 20 from 45 with Hawks )

Kevin Murray (a great player for Fitzroy but as a coach managed to lose all 39 games coached)

Tony Shaw (30 from 88 took Pies bottom)

Murray Weiderman (19 from 45 took Pies bottom)

Ken Judge (37 from 89 with Hawks & 12 from 44 with West Coast)

Peter Schwab (52 from 109 at the Hawks. took the Hawks to the finals in his first two seasons then all downhill)

Royce Hart (8 from 53 at Footscray)

Kevin Bartlett (27 from 88 at Richmond)

Tim Watson (12 from 44 at the Saints)

Robert Shaw (45 from 130 at Fitzroy & Adelaide)

Matthew Nights (25 of 65 at Essendon but it was the thrashings that took their toll)

Darrell Baldock (Very sucessful in Tasmania but couldn't repeat the success with the Saints 18 from 44)

Just a not here that there were many successful coaches to go to the Saints, Mike Patterson who won 1971-2 premierships at North Adelaide and the Australian Championship in '72, Tony Jewell Richmond Premiership coach, Malcom Blight also had problems there.

Gary Buckenarra ( 3 from 25 with the Swans)

Col Kinnear (23 from 66 at Swans) He inherited problems

Graeme John (15 from 66 at Swans)

Norm Smith (26 from 87 at Swans) not even the great Norm Smith could rescue the Swans in those days. Smith had been very successful at Melbourne and was seen as the Messiah.

Carl Ditterich (11 from 44 at Melbourne)

Ron Barrassi (34 from 111 at Melbourne. at the Swans Ron developed a team for Rodney Eade to take over. AT Melbourne there was no development program and he must have been thoroughly frustrated by that experience. Melbourne were expecting a premiership and just expected it to happen because the great man was coaching)

Some of these coaches are the victims of circumstance like Barrassi, Norm Smith and Darrell Baldock but others were just not meant to coach. Add any great or even very good footballer who went on to fail as a coach.

[ShockOfHair]

Yep, the skillset for a coach is totally different from that of a player.

A friend of mine has a theory that the best coaches are backmen, like Roos, Malthouse, Sheedy, because the game is played in front of them. That's not true because there've been plenty of coaches who were rucks, rovers, midfielders. My counter-theory is that forwards rarely make successful coaches. I know Norm Smith himself was a full-forward and our man Horse was also a gun goalsneak.

But apart from him I can't think of a forward player who's been a successful coach in the past 20-30 years. Any suggestions?

[alt_mattr]

I have always wondered why so many coaches are former players. They are completely different roles. It just does not happen in many other sports, seems a particularly Australian thing.

[Jewels]

I have always wondered why so many coaches are former players. They are completely different roles. It just does not happen in many other sports, seems a particularly Australian thing.

I have no idea on other sports so no idea if this is true or not, but I would have thought coaching would be a natural progression from playing.

[wolftone57]

I have always wondered why so many coaches are former players. They are completely different roles. It just does not happen in many other sports, seems a particularly Australian thing.

If you have never played the game how can you coach it? You wouldn't know how it actually feels to be in the situations the players are in. I am not one who believes that a player has to have played at the highest level to be a good coach. There were several AFL/VFL coaches who never played AFL/VFL football at the highest level but at the reserves level or an interstate competition. Some of them were very good coaches.

[R-1]

Arsene Wenger is probably the best example of a successful coach who barely played himself. It's certainly possible. Having never played at all might be rarer but I bet there's still excellent motivators, tactical minds or trainers capable of doing it.