Hi John,
Here are a few questions for my uni assignment interview

1. What were the main differences between the drafting process when you played for Richmond compared to the drafting processes in your coaching career?

In my early days it was open to all the country whoever made the best approaches (what club) won the recruit. The recruiting was based on personality and honesty.
Do you believe the drafting process has changed greatly since your career ended in 1998?
There have been many changes over the years, zoning came in, then territories were changed meaning a lot of clubs missed out on great recruits. Clubs of course were not happy and the drafting procedure took place.

2. What was the main thing that you looked for when selecting potential recruits for your club? Was it solely the best player, best player suited for the team etc. Did character come into it at all?

It was generally the needs of the team, personality of the player and making sure the family of the boy were happy for him to be drafted to our club. Many clubs selected the best player however this has turned out to be disastrous on many occasions

3. Did you personally interview potential recruits or was that left to the footy manager or recruiting manager?

I always felt it very important to meet with the player and his parents. To me recruiting is a two way situation, we need to know about their son and they need to know about our club and in particular who the people are that were being entrusted to look after their son.

4. How much input did you get into what player the club selected?

During the season when a potential recruit was spotted I always endeavoured to watch the potential recruits.

5. What do you think about the psych/mental testing currently used at the draft camp? Do you find it to be a relevant exercise?

This is very important it really gives you an indepth about the recruit, his behaviour, personality and likely work ethic.
He may not be the best player have the silky skills of others however may still be the best recruit because of other attributes.
Thanks a lot for helping me out with this, massively helpful.

the articles about the different positions are great, i need to teach guys the basics of a position and these fit perfectly. I was just wondering if you have one about the forward flank position too? i know you have put the forward pockets in with the full forward position, but i would appreciate one for the flanks. Thanks.

As always its all about practice. To directly improve the distance of your players kicking, it might be a good time to raise their awareness of ball drop and the time they make connection with the ball when they kick. This obviously has alot to do with the distance of the kicking as you can increase the elevation of the ball. Have your players work on drills found here, http://www.swoopercoach.com.au/category/training-drills/half-oval/, alternating thier kicking style and the time it takes to kick the bal from thier ball drop.

Hope this helps

i currently coach un 14′s some of my boys struggle to kick at a distance how can i improve they kicking distance.

thanks

I would like to know your thoughts on midfield rotations… at the top level we are seeing increasing numbers of interchanges, particularly over the last 2-3 years, is there a specific time frame they are basing these changes on? eg 7 minute bursts etc? i have seen a study that says the intensity/speed and distance players have covered has increased yet the time on the ground has decreased. Can you give me an example of a rotation you have used?