David EdwardsPagan Shown the Door, As Carlton Set To Still Flounder
July 23rd 2007 12:56
In yet another twist during the Blues’ long winded downfall, coach Denis Pagan was given the sack from the club this evening after five years at the helm.
The Carlton directors boards announced tonight that Pagan was relieved from his position, effective immediately, after Carlton suffered yet another massive loss (117 points) against the Brisbane Lions on Sunday.
Arriving from the Kangaroos in 2001, Pagan was long considered as one of the strongest and smartest coaches in the game. Taking North Melbourne to two premierships (1996 & 1999), there was a general talk that Pagan would be one of the few coaches that could relive the Blues glory days.
However, after the club was penalised hard for salary cap breaches in the form of fines and loss of draft picks not long after arriving at Carlton, Pagan was constantly fighting an uphill battle in ensuring that his side return to glory, a battle that was long lost before his sacking tonight.
During his tenure at the club, Carlton never finished higher than 11th in any home and away season, won the last two wooden spoons consecutively, and suffered six defeats by 100 points or more.
There was no doubt that the writing was on the wall in regards to the Pagan sacking, as many commentators believing that after their massive drubbing to the hands of the Lions would be the final straw for the board, after enduring a number of years as being considered the joke of the AFL.
But as Pagan packs up his gear, the worst is not over for the side. In fact, there nothing but suffering and humiliation in cards for the Blues for some years to come. But why has a side that has such a proud and prodigious history fallen so hard so quickly?
The simple fact is that it was not Pagan, far from it, but the thought process of the club. From 1997 onwards, when the national draft was introduced to the league, the Blues did not ever consider it as a way to breed young stars into becoming the potential leaders of the side, but as a way to bolster their squad by trading away for already established players.
Their short term vision, which gave them results they needed at that time (Grand Finalists in ’99, Prelim Finalists in 2000, and Semi Finalists in ’01), there is no doubt that their sharp decline into wooden spoon territory was paved by their limited vision back then.
A sharp consideration was presented on radio station SEN by four time premiership winner Martin Pike this evening which displayed how Carlton slipped on this opportunity. In 1999, Carlton traded all but one draft pick (no 68) for established players. Now, three players who were picked up in the national draft that year are not only playing in Geelong but are part of the leadership core. The players? Corey Enright, Cameron Ling and Paul Chapman, the engine room that has set the Cats on fire at the moment.
Whilst the Blues has changed their format around dramatically in the past couple of seasons, and have finally settled in securing the best young talent available, but it might be in regards to the club that they are trying to close the gate after the horses have bolted. At the moment, there are a small handful of players that have played between 50-100 AFL games on the Blues’ squad list, a number that will drop dramatically at the end of this year.
There is no doubt that one of the biggest factors on why Carlton suffer so much is their lack of leadership, so what will happen in the near future when three of their biggest leaders at the club (Fevola, Lappin & Whitnall) either retire or move on to greener pastures? If the Blues can recover from running what will look essentially like a crèche, they could return to pure form, but this will not be for some time for sure.
And what of Pagan, after being in the coaching game for 25 years (albeit with a number of teams) he will be enjoying a well deserved break. His time at the Kangaroos would have built his confidence, spirit and above all passion for the game, but his five years at Carlton would have shattered all that dramatically. Whether we see him return is a big question mark, and personally i believe that after his time with the Blues he is more than happy to just simply walk off into the sunset. We can only hope the board of directors ensure that the next coach is prepared for such a massive task in bringing the club back to life, and give him the resources and talent to achieve such a miracle.
Until next time, sports minds.
The Carlton directors boards announced tonight that Pagan was relieved from his position, effective immediately, after Carlton suffered yet another massive loss (117 points) against the Brisbane Lions on Sunday.
Arriving from the Kangaroos in 2001, Pagan was long considered as one of the strongest and smartest coaches in the game. Taking North Melbourne to two premierships (1996 & 1999), there was a general talk that Pagan would be one of the few coaches that could relive the Blues glory days.
However, after the club was penalised hard for salary cap breaches in the form of fines and loss of draft picks not long after arriving at Carlton, Pagan was constantly fighting an uphill battle in ensuring that his side return to glory, a battle that was long lost before his sacking tonight.
During his tenure at the club, Carlton never finished higher than 11th in any home and away season, won the last two wooden spoons consecutively, and suffered six defeats by 100 points or more.
There was no doubt that the writing was on the wall in regards to the Pagan sacking, as many commentators believing that after their massive drubbing to the hands of the Lions would be the final straw for the board, after enduring a number of years as being considered the joke of the AFL.
But as Pagan packs up his gear, the worst is not over for the side. In fact, there nothing but suffering and humiliation in cards for the Blues for some years to come. But why has a side that has such a proud and prodigious history fallen so hard so quickly?
The simple fact is that it was not Pagan, far from it, but the thought process of the club. From 1997 onwards, when the national draft was introduced to the league, the Blues did not ever consider it as a way to breed young stars into becoming the potential leaders of the side, but as a way to bolster their squad by trading away for already established players.
Their short term vision, which gave them results they needed at that time (Grand Finalists in ’99, Prelim Finalists in 2000, and Semi Finalists in ’01), there is no doubt that their sharp decline into wooden spoon territory was paved by their limited vision back then.
A sharp consideration was presented on radio station SEN by four time premiership winner Martin Pike this evening which displayed how Carlton slipped on this opportunity. In 1999, Carlton traded all but one draft pick (no 68) for established players. Now, three players who were picked up in the national draft that year are not only playing in Geelong but are part of the leadership core. The players? Corey Enright, Cameron Ling and Paul Chapman, the engine room that has set the Cats on fire at the moment.
Whilst the Blues has changed their format around dramatically in the past couple of seasons, and have finally settled in securing the best young talent available, but it might be in regards to the club that they are trying to close the gate after the horses have bolted. At the moment, there are a small handful of players that have played between 50-100 AFL games on the Blues’ squad list, a number that will drop dramatically at the end of this year.
There is no doubt that one of the biggest factors on why Carlton suffer so much is their lack of leadership, so what will happen in the near future when three of their biggest leaders at the club (Fevola, Lappin & Whitnall) either retire or move on to greener pastures? If the Blues can recover from running what will look essentially like a crèche, they could return to pure form, but this will not be for some time for sure.
And what of Pagan, after being in the coaching game for 25 years (albeit with a number of teams) he will be enjoying a well deserved break. His time at the Kangaroos would have built his confidence, spirit and above all passion for the game, but his five years at Carlton would have shattered all that dramatically. Whether we see him return is a big question mark, and personally i believe that after his time with the Blues he is more than happy to just simply walk off into the sunset. We can only hope the board of directors ensure that the next coach is prepared for such a massive task in bringing the club back to life, and give him the resources and talent to achieve such a miracle.
Until next time, sports minds.
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