Great Scott!

Reports that Geelong will announce Chris Scott as their new senior coach suggest that the Geelong Football Club has learned the lesson afforded when it appointed Mark Thompson a decade ago.

 

Thompson, it should be remembered, was a no-frills, no-nonsense half back through three of Essendon’s recent Premierships, the last as captain.

 

Immediately preceding Thompson, neither the flamboyant Malcolm Blight, nor the showy Gary Ayers could manage silverware for the Cats (nor a swag of ex-Geelong players since 1963).

 

It’s worth noting the adjectives we’re using for these three. No frills, flamboyant, showy. And which one brought home the silverware?

 

If the reports are proved correct, we think Scott is an inspired choice, for the simple reason that he had many of the same attributes as a footballer that Thompson had. The style was certainly different and the Scott boys certainly played for keeps, but would happily accept the labels ‘no-frills’ and ‘no-nonsense’ we think.

 

Twin brother Brad has had an excellent start to his senior coaching career, dragging the Kangaroos to the brink of finals contention when nearly everyone — not AussieRulesBlog, we hasten to add — had them set for the lower reaches of the ladder. No doubt that indefinable ‘Shinboner spirit’ played its part, but we think Scott also understands what is needed for his lesser lights to contribute at a level that helps the team get the greatest benefit from their stars.

 

There’s one other benefit from going outside of the Thompson coaching ‘family’ — a completely different message for the players, delivered with a new voice. Just as Thompson could be jaded after ten years, the players may well relish a new flavour to their footy and their pre-season.

 

Adding to the interest will be the new Hird regime at Essendon. It would be hard to imagine a greater contrast than between Hird and the Scott brothers as players. How well superstar Hird understands the minds of mere mortals will go a long way to determining how well the Bombers perform over the next four years.