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Reds 2019

TSR

Andrew Slack (58)
Look that could be right. But last year it also did the rounds that Thorn wouldn’t pick him again after an incident on an away trip. And that was just the ne of many rumours about people he had supposedly fallen out with that turned out to be false.

Clearly Thorn is prepared to put a line through certain individuals, but maybe some of the rumours should be left aside.
 

southsider

Arch Winning (36)
It’s a hard one, you’ve always got to have one eye on the future but at the same time DP should be applauded for giving the reds ample notice, better him tell them now and give them time to plan and recruit than dropping it on them at the end of the year
 

Silverado

Dick Tooth (41)
It’s a hard one, you’ve always got to have one eye on the future but at the same time DP should be applauded for giving the reds ample notice, better him tell them now and give them time to plan and recruit than dropping it on them at the end of the year
Totally agree, but in professional sport people are going to come and go. You work with what you’ve got this year and worry about what happens next year next year
 

dru

David Wilson (68)
Look that could be right. But last year it also did the rounds that Thorn wouldn’t pick him again after an incident on an away trip. And that was just the ne of many rumours about people he had supposedly fallen out with that turned out to be false.

Clearly Thorn is prepared to put a line through certain individuals, but maybe some of the rumours should be left aside.

The fact that some fans are speculating on Thorns attitudes is solely a responsibility to Thorn, he made his bed he will sleep in it.
 

Ignoto

Greg Davis (50)
Clearly Thorn is prepared to put a line through certain individuals, but maybe some of the rumours should be left aside.


There's more to fan engagement than the annual day at Balleymore where the kids can get photos with the players and jersey's signed.

If Brad or the Team Manager of the Reds aren't going to go on the front foot and give the public and press to discuss rather than leave it up to them to fill the airwaves with.

Similar it being a horrendous idea for Trump to blurt out every idea in his head after watching Fox & Friends, Thorn can't keep everything bottled up.
 
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TSR

Andrew Slack (58)
I get what you are saying guys, I really do, but I guess my point is that during the off-season I read that all of Higgers, Salakai-Loto, Rodda, Tuttle, Kerevi and the Smith twins (out of the ones I can remember) didn't like the set up and wanted out. Now maybe there is some truth there, but it doesn't appear so in at least most of those cases. Someone always misses out in selection, and I personally think it will be a mistake if DP misses out. And I am aware he has signed for OS. But neither of those things means he has fallen out with Thorn or that Thorn has put a line through his name. I just think people are jumping a bit too quickly to pin things on Thorn's tough stance on culture when there it is pretty evident that the rumours that have been thrown out in the past around these things have turned out to be false. We actually have competition in the centres, and someone decent will miss out.

As an aside, a couple of people I know have attended pre-season events with the Reds and, from what they have said, Thorn has been relatively open with regards to his position on things. He just avoids talking specifically about individual players. One of them had the opportunity to engage with the players in a petty informal setting and he said they all seemed extremely positive about the set up. Also, from my experience the Reds social media seems to be pretty active in promoting the Reds (and I am not in anyway an apologist for the QRU).

I also note that both Slipper & Hunt end up in the position they did due to multiple issues with Cocaine. I'm not trying to be a Puritan here - people stuff up and people have different standards with social drugs, but it is unrealistic to think that either player wouldn't have been aware they were putting their contract in danger if they got caught, regardless of who the coach was.

My final comment - I have heard from multiple sources, and it appears to have been confirmed on here not long ago that standards in the playing group were very lax, and had been for some time, and player power had been a significant factor in the lack of performance at the Reds for some time. In that sort of environment I can't say I am overly surprised by the extent to which Thorn has gone to change things.
 

dru

David Wilson (68)
Thorn gets to bask in the glory, when they get there.

We are circular at this point, but I stand by the view that Thorn’s stance is not without issues - Reds fan chatter around those issues, under the title of “culture” in relation to particular respected players and their position with Thorn - this is natural. Especially on a Reds thread.

This does not stop me wishing the best behind Thorn’s process and intent. But also wishing for a Reds game that goes beyond bish-bash no matter how successful.
 

PhilClinton

Tony Shaw (54)
My final comment - I have heard from multiple sources, and it appears to have been confirmed on here not long ago that standards in the playing group were very lax, and had been for some time, and player power had been a significant factor in the lack of performance at the Reds for some time. In that sort of environment I can't say I am overly surprised by the extent to which Thorn has gone to change things.


How long were the standards said to be laxed for? Genuinely curious, not doubting it. I don't know Steve Moore personally but I would have thought he is the sort of bloke who wouldn't let too much shit fly so once he got back into the Reds setup a few years back that would have tightened the screws. Maybe i'm wrong.
 

Beer Baron

Phil Hardcastle (33)
How long were the standards said to be laxed for? Genuinely curious, not doubting it. I don't know Steve Moore personally but I would have thought he is the sort of bloke who wouldn't let too much shit fly so once he got back into the Reds setup a few years back that would have tightened the screws. Maybe i'm wrong.

Knowing he was soon to retire - i wonder if would have wasted too much energy telling young kids to pull their heads in.
 

The Nomad

Bob Davidson (42)
Think the issues were more to do with a lack of consequences for certain players. Guys still got a start despite training/standards not quite being up to scratch. You can bang on about team culture all you like, but if you are getting away with short cuts in any environment performance will be effected.

The one thing you can definitely say about Thorn is that there are consequences to not completely buying into the standards he sets. IMO this really does help a young/developing team like the Reds.
 

PhilClinton

Tony Shaw (54)
Knowing he was soon to retire - i wonder if would have wasted too much energy telling young kids to pull their heads in.


I can see this being true for a journeyman type bloke, passing through a few teams as they get older to top up the retirement fund. But Steve always seemed pretty genuinely passionate about QLD, I know he's settled his family in Brisbane so I would think (hope) he would have wanted to leave the Reds locker room in decent shape and pass on some leadership qualities.
 

LearningCurve

Bill Watson (15)
Think the issues were more to do with a lack of consequences for certain players. Guys still got a start despite training/standards not quite being up to scratch. You can bang on about team culture all you like, but if you are getting away with short cuts in any environment performance will be effected.

The one thing you can definitely say about Thorn is that there are consequences to not completely buying into the standards he sets. IMO this really does help a young/developing team like the Reds.

Performance on the field and not in training is what should really count. There have been great players who were not noted great trainers but delivered on the field, and then there have been teams that 'trained really well' but didn't show up on the match day. Ideally we should have performance in both but if we base everything on what they lift and how fast they perform in beep tests then we ignore the players who have great skills and instinct and end up with strong athletes who can't change a game when it is not going to plan.
 

TSR

Andrew Slack (58)
Performance on the field and not in training is what should really count. There have been great players who were not noted great trainers but delivered on the field, and then there have been teams that 'trained really well' but didn't show up on the match day. Ideally we should have performance in both but if we base everything on what they lift and how fast they perform in beep tests then we ignore the players who have great skills and instinct and end up with strong athletes who can't change a game when it is not going to plan.
But the point is that they weren’t putting in/performing on the field and were (apparently) not prepared to address the short falls off the field.

In terms of time frames, it’s been 5-6 years. I assume the seeds of destruction were sowed in the post-2011 period.

I am not trying to say it is all one sided. Certainly some of the treatment of the players from head office sounds like it was shoddy at times.
 
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