Eels Blogs

Replies

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  Camo73 January 13, 2010 at 11:56am

  He's the best coach to have never won a premiership.
  I wonder whether he'd still be with us if the downfall of Denis Fitzgerald occurred 4 years earlier.
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  Johno January 13, 2010 at 11:02pm

  Why wouldn't you flick WIllie. The most over-rated player in the game by a long shot, sorry Gallen is a close second, and way too disruptive for any team. He needs to be given a reality dose and let go.
  
  Smith always seemed to have the knack of getting higher performance than what he should have with the cattle at his disposal. Every club he has been at he has left in a better state. Like Camo has said, he will most likely go down as the best coach in history to never win a premiership.
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  Gil Carter January 14, 2010 at 6:56pm

  Gee, some of you guys are tough markers. Smith brought a professionalism, structure & discipline to the club that had been missing since the Jack Gibson years. Sure, he didn't win us a premiership, but how can you blame him for 2001? - Really, Newcastle were technically perfect in that first half & the players themselves may have thought the game was theirs for the taking. - The bottom line is, he left this club in better shape than when he arrived. Premiership or no premiership, at least we were still competitive every week. There's nothing worse than following your team knowing they're probably going to lose next week, or that one of the players will make the front page of the Tele in the morning. - I know if he coached a team into a GF & Parra weren't involved, I would be going for that team (even the Roosters)
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  YDIDISAYIDO January 14, 2010 at 8:18pm

  Taleted coach with a lot of flaws... was great for the club but stayed too long
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  Daneel January 14, 2010 at 9:20pm

  I would sign Willie without hesitation. He just needs the right coach to manage him properly..... Ando? what do you think mate?
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  Eeldarado January 14, 2010 at 9:27pm

  Here Here Gilbert I second your comments!!!
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  Tinkerbell January 14, 2010 at 9:36pm

  Brian Smith was and remains a brilliant coach. While I am too young to remember the early 90's it seems like it was a dismal time to be a Parramatta supporter. Brian Smith brought structure, professionalism and his brilliant knowledge of the game to Parramatta and completely turned the club around.
  
  I maintain that there is no coach who cares about and pushes his players the way Brian does. Unfortunately this didn't suit all the players at Parramatta and his intensity is often blamed for the reason we lost pivotal Final Series matches. I however respect Brian for all he did for our Club and was disappointed in the manner in which he left.
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  Michael Ericson January 14, 2010 at 10:19pm

  I agree he was technically good for Parra, but I think part of the reason why he has never won a comp, and lets face it a very talented Parra squad choked on more than one occasion under Smith, was that he was too restricting and dictatorial.
  
  As an example I'll use a good mate of mine who played a bit of footy (mainly reserve grade) at parra about 10 years ago. My mate once was chatting to Smith and told him that he wanted to finish his HSC and do a decent job. Smith responded that if he was coach of the reserve grade team he would have dropped him if he was focused on anything outside of footy.
  
  I think he was, and is, too intense. Footy is just a game and people are supposed to have fun playing the game. Sure it is also a business and people want results but usually those results come with having fun and being able to relax a bit.
  
  Smith coached sides are robotic and whilst that might get you quite a long way, you need a little flair to go all the way. Usually I felt that under Smith our flair was in spite of him instead of because of him.
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  Johnny Suede January 15, 2010 at 8:43am

  What I always loved about him was the way he read other teams. Most teams would simply play their game, but Smith-coached teams changed tactics each week to outsmart the opposition. I loved that about him and I reckon he made ordinary teams far less ordinary. The Roosters will do well under him, which will simply prove what an idiot Fittler was as a coach.
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  waldo January 15, 2010 at 8:57am

  Brian Smith is a dud and I was never happier than when he left Parra. Big Willie's ego can't be reined in and he's a coach's nightmare. Both underperform to the max when the chips are down.
  Newcastle's involvement with performance enhancing drugs is long and well-documented and everyone was surprised at how easy they ran through Parra in that final. Now in hindsight, perhaps not so much.