Donstuie wrote:
Some of you may have noticed (unlikely) that I've been absent from TC this year, for various reasons I will not get into here.
But now seems like an appropriate time to pop my head out of my cave to give my overall impressions not just of today but this year in general.
In short, I see today as the end result of a season equal parts hubris, schadenfreude, arrogance, incompetence, unaccountability, stupidity and mental weakness.
"Who gives a shit about percentage? We won!"
After we gave up big leads earlier in the year to scrape over the line. Could've done with some of that today, eh? And people wonder why there's a perception that we're satisfied with mediocrity, or doing just enough.
"It's just bad luck it can't be helped" or "We're just cursed"
Any time yet another player goes down with a serious injury, hurts themselves at training or pulls out on the day of a game. How many years does this shit continue before bad luck simply doesn't @#$%&! cut it as an excuse anymore?
"We're focused on our process, and haven't even mentioned finals"
Is this why we only decide to show up in do-or-die games against top opposition but couldn't give less of a @#$%&! against weaker opposition (Adelaide, St Kilda, Gold Coast)? Do you think the team we played today weren't sold on the possibility of what they could achieve if they simply gave their all and played for each other, and not just "following a process"? Also, who the @#$%&! are we to expect to simply roll over anyone??
"We would've only been making up the numbers in finals anyway, better we lost"
If you think that a club that has been starved of finals for a decade would gain nothing from shooting that albatross, you've mastered the art of denial.
"We don't need [Player X] because of our no-dickheads policy"
I'm as guilty as anyone of this one, but maybe it's high time we injected some cauliflower into this team. And if we can't do it internally, maybe we need to find it somewhere else.
"Dropping a heart and soul player like [Player X] sends a bad message to the rest of the team"
@#$%&! em. If a player getting dropped is enough to make you drop your bundle, @#$%&! right off.
"The players are mentally prepared each week"
...
"We have strong leaders"
...
"Just wait until......."
Still @#$%&! waiting....
"The players are hurting right now"
Clearly not @#$%&! enough, and certainly not as much as we do. If that were the case, why do they continue to put themselves in positions to get hurt all over again? Get them to stand behind M1 in the Southern Stand and experience what the supporters have to endure because of their incompetence, laziness or @#$%&! ups. Instead of being escorted to the cocoon of the change rooms before retreating to their giant houses as they begin their mad Monday and holiday preparations. Or at least show us you @#$%&! hurt, and instead of giving a rehearsed interview look down the barrel of the camera and say "We let you down. We failed you. And we will do everything in our power to make sure this doesn't happen again.
"If you were offered 12-10 and 9th at the start of the year, you'd take that"
Not after an 8-3 start. KPI's in all facets of life need to be reviewed based on the situation at the time.
"They'll learn from this" or "This will burn them for next year"
They should be Harvard @#$%&! graduates with the amount of experiences they'll "learn from", or look like a suitless Darth Vader with the number of times they've "burned".
"We're still proud of what the boys have achieved"
8 @#$%&! years since the beginning of our latest rebuild, and we still can't even make finals. While on this topic...
"Look at Melbourne and Richmond, they missed finals and won a flag the next year"
Both teams made @#$%&! finals in the years before missing out!!!
"The umpires don't treat us any differently to other teams"
Exhibit A: Lynch last night
Exhibit B: What you saw today
I could go on and on...
So what is my point from all of these ramblings? All of the above have been uttered by players, coaches and supporters throughout the year (and prior), and all demonstrate a mindset based on excuses, lack of accountability and a satisfaction with mediocrity.
How can we expect actions to change if the narrative never does?
I don't have the answers, as none of us do. But I think we can all agree that as supporters and members we have nothing more to give.
At some point the talk needs to stop.
The excuses, platitudes and cliches need to stop.
They need to be replaced by ruthlessness and a demand for excellence in everything we do.
They need to be replaced by a dissatisfaction not only in missing finals, but in watching two other teams play for the @#$%&! flag.
I want to believe that the club has it in them to make this a reality, but forgive me if I need some more @#$%&! convincing.
OUT
Thank you.
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