We had Brian Cook and Graeme Wright last season.
Yep
And Wright spent the year having a good look at what was going on and as soon as he took control he made some changes.
Coach and Recruiting team weren't part of those changes...yet!
If you go back a little further to 2024 when we had our run and looked the best we have since 2000 it was on the back of Cripps, TDK and Curnow.
The latter two got injured and we fell off a cliff.
Our injury list in 2024 consisted of much more than TDK and Curnow
Docherty didn't play until the end of the season and was clearly underdone.
As well as an extensive list of players down through the year..
Players listed as doubtful or needing tests prior to the elimination final against Brisbane included-
McKay
Cerra
McGovern
Willliams
Martin
Boyd
Durdin
Marchbank
We didn't fall off a cliff in 2024...we were pushed off by the injury gods.
We had Brian Cook and Graeme Wright last season.
Whilst I acknowledge this thread is about the list improving or worsening, I am a little surprised about the lack of discussion throughout the forum of things beyond the list. Leaving aside the obvious ultimate goal of a premiership, what we all want to see is more wins and more convincing form. Improvement can come from a number of sources, which are not always on field and when they are, they're not easy to gauge or measure. It may be that Davies and Wright will provide leadership and direction that has been previously lacking, which will flow through the organization. It may be that the presence of Boak, Simpson, and new assistant coaches will give Voss the support and feedback he needs to go to the next level. There may have been disharmony and distraction throughout the playing group wrt Charlie, De Koning and Jack Silvagni - perhaps that is now in the past, and a more unified, less distracted group may play better football. We have finally have better luck with injuries etc.
Treating the players as atomistic, self contained entities, like parts of a machine, certainly has its place, but can only take you so far IMO.
TDKs main value was that of an extra midfielder, those other players don't come close to what he offered around the ground and its essentially why he got offered the big money.
What I'm arguing with is that you are looking at the 'best' of these players and arguing what we've lost means we will slip further down the ladder.
But if Tom, Charlie and Jack, had played at that level (their best) for a whole season I'm pretty sure we would have finished better than eleventh.
Even 50-60 goals from Charlie would have made a difference.
TDK is a loss, but it's a loss of a certain type of ruckman and we still have Pittonet who shaded him in ruck work, and O'Keefe (who is a probably a better ruck forward) who will more than likely improve....and Reidy who was behind a couple of pretty good rucks at Freo but played some very good football at the WAFL level, to consider...so net loss for TDK not so much.
So we have to look at their 2025 output when deciding whether or not their loss is as significant as you claim.
We only have to replace their 2025 efforts to maintain our position or do better.
Now that's even before we consider the season losses of Newman, Kemp and Jagga.
Add the loss of O'Farrell when he was just starting to show the goods.
Then consider Harry and his issues...the distraction that was Elijah.
You can't see how we're going to be as good as 11th
I can't see how we're going to be worse.
So best we agree to disgree.
If you go back a little further to 2024 when we had our run and looked the best we have since 2000 it was on the back of Cripps, TDK and Curnow.
The latter two got injured and we fell off a cliff.
I'm not doing the one to one thing again, I'm doing out vs in. 4 positions we got worse, 2 positions we got better. I don't know why you guys fight against that so much. Overall team cohesion will magically get better based off of that to create a net win... that's an argument i disagree with.
Charlie before he did his knee may never have reached the heights he did. Charlie in 2025 was cooked. Didn't have a preseason. Played through injury. We refused to drop him and key him recover. A common theme with us.
I don't care if tdk is 2nd ruck at saints, he was first ruck with us. Arguments like that are said to diminish his importance rather than acknowledge his loss.
Playing devils advocate, if all these players are so bad, why did they get record contract/ trade offers? Perhaps it's more about you, than them?
If all the players we got in are so good, who did clubs push them out the door for a discounted price?
What I'm arguing with is that you are looking at the 'best' of these players and arguing what we've lost means we will slip further down the ladder.
But if Tom, Charlie and Jack, had played at that level (their best) for a whole season I'm pretty sure we would have finished better than eleventh.
Even 50-60 goals from Charlie would have made a difference.
TDK is a loss, but it's a loss of a certain type of ruckman and we still have Pittonet who shaded him in ruck work, and O'Keefe (who is a probably a better ruck forward) who will more than likely improve....and Reidy who was behind a couple of pretty good rucks at Freo but played some very good football at the WAFL level, to consider...so net loss for TDK not so much.
So we have to look at their 2025 output when deciding whether or not their loss is as significant as you claim.
We only have to replace their 2025 efforts to maintain our position or do better.
Now that's even before we consider the season losses of Newman, Kemp and Jagga.
Add the loss of O'Farrell when he was just starting to show the goods.
Then consider Harry and his issues...the distraction that was Elijah.
You can't see how we're going to be as good as 11th
I can't see how we're going to be worse.
So best we agree to disgree.
You're doing the 'one to one' thing again and you're talking the best of their ability
Charlie 'was' a Coleman medallist, he may yet be one again, but 2025 Charlie was nowhere near it.
Doc was cooked.
And 'Jack the Saint' struggles to put more than 2/3s of a season together.
TDK isn't even the best ruckman at St Kilda.
...and both the last two are going to miss big chunks of pre-season.
I'm not doing the one to one thing again, I'm doing out vs in. 4 positions we got worse, 2 positions we got better. I don't know why you guys fight against that so much. Overall team cohesion will magically get better based off of that to create a net win... that's an argument i disagree with.
Charlie before he did his knee may never have reached the heights he did. Charlie in 2025 was cooked. Didn't have a preseason. Played through injury. We refused to drop him and key him recover. A common theme with us.
I don't care if tdk is 2nd ruck at saints, he was first ruck with us. Arguments like that are said to diminish his importance rather than acknowledge his loss.
Playing devils advocate, if all these players are so bad, why did they get record contract/ trade offers? Perhaps it's more about you, than them?
If all the players we got in are so good, who did clubs push them out the door for a discounted price?