Latest news with #MickMalthouse
ABC News
08-08-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
With the AFL's latest sacking, coaches are facing more and more scrutiny
When Simon Goodwin sat down for his press conference just hours after being sacked, he had already started to strip the Demons from his identity. He wore no tie around his neck, and a few shirt buttons were undone, as if the choking pressure of coaching had been released. Next to him sat Melbourne President Brad Green, whose red and blue tie was firmly fastened. And together they went through a gruelling ritual few other employers make their axed leaders go through — trying to explain it all to the media. "I was disappointed, there's no doubt about that, but I certainly respect the board's decision," Goodwin said, having been toppled with three weeks left in the season and another year left on his contract. It's a brutal, public spectacle — and may not be the last time we see it play out this year as clubs grapple with the full results of a season. "You're under pressure every day of the year regardless of who you coach," said 700-game and three-time premiership winning coach Mick Malthouse, who was sacked by Carlton in 2015. "If you take a job on like this you know that your time is limited and that it's going to get you at some stage. "There are only four of five coaches … probably four, who don't have to look behind their back this year." Two days after Goodwin's sacking from Melbourne, Carlton moved to "confirm with absolute clarity" that Michael Voss will remain coach into 2026, such was the fervour surrounding his position during a tumultuous season for the Blues. Voss faces a level of scrutiny from fans and the media that's almost unique to the biggest clubs in the league. "It sort of feels a little bit of hollow joy in some ways," Voss said the following morning. "There's no contentment in how we've found ourselves here, and probably how it's played out, or feeling like there's a contentment in being able to get that reassurance that you get to see out your contract," he said. "I think where the theatre is on the outside is very different to what's happening on the inside, and I reckon one of the key things as a coach is that when you come into this role is you've got to understand and be content that there's an end at some point in time." But as the season draws to a close, many other boards will be examining if they've got the right leader in charge — and that makes this time of year "challenging" for coaches according to AFL Coaches Association CEO Alistair Nicholson. "It's probably where we find we have the most individual discussions with our members and help them through this and give them the support they need," he said. "As the footy public become more and more versed in how they consume football and their expectations and demands, you can certainly see [the pressure] in the last few years, it's continued to increase. "The breadth of the role is so much more than what it once was that they're effectively managers more so than coaches. "So, rather than just the on-field, there's all of the support in the promotion of the club, there's list retention, list attraction of players, so it's a significantly more complex role. "And it's constant, there's not really an off-season, and then you also overlay the intangibles that you get in elite sport — with injuries to players, there might be some instability in a club, there's media pressures." The AFL has increased game-day security for several coaches in recent weeks after Goodwin and Voss were threatened on social media. "It's abhorrent abuse that's directed at coaches when the team is not going well," said Susan McLean, a cyber safety consultant who has worked with the AFL. McLean believes a lot of abuse continues to go unreported, and when it is raised with the AFL there is little it can do to punish those responsible, arguing that coaches and the league need to be prepared to take matters further. "One of the reasons we have laws is not only to set an acceptable standard of behaviour in society, but it is to provide a deterrent so when people see people being charged for committing this crime then they're deterred from doing it themselves," she said. "And in my mind, we're not seeing that because there's no runs on the board when it comes to prosecutions for online abuse in the AFL." Near the end of Goodwin's press conference, he thanked his supporters and his family. "They've been incredible. They ride every bump with you," he said. It is often a coach's family who are the most impacted by the public 'noise' and online attacks that come their loved one's way, said Malthouse. "That sort of stuff, I didn't take any notice of, I wasn't on social media. "It's more your kids and your wife that will be the victims of all that and they'll cop it all the time. "That's just a fact of life; they will cop it. "The majority of the time they bear it, but it does have an effect." Asked if it's the toughest job in Melbourne to lead an underperforming team, Malthouse replied, "that or the Liberal leader".
ABC News
08-08-2025
- Sport
- ABC News
Fri Fix: Mick Malthouse on stopping Collingwood's downward spiral
There is a season in decline and there is one that's unravelling. Collingwood is getting close to the later after its fourth loss in five weeks. Why is this happening and how do they arrest the trajectory? Mick Malthouse joins us to share his wisdom. The ex-Collingwood premiership winner then explains why Melbourne need a proven coach and tips his hat to Carlton's board. PLUS, we try to understand the scope of the injury damage at Brisbane and forecast two huge Saturday clashes in the NRL. Featured: Mick Malthouse, ex-Collingwood premiership coach. Zac Bailey, NRL reporter, Channel Nine.
Herald Sun
27-06-2025
- Sport
- Herald Sun
Mick Malthouse lifts the lid on different Carlton culture, influence of former players, rich family
Coaching legend Mick Malthouse says Carlton has a 'fundamentally different' culture to any other club he led, where outspoken former players and rich family benefactors have 'way too much influence' for stability and success. Pressure is ramping up on Michael Voss, but Malthouse – himself sacked by the Blues 10 years ago – believes the issues at Carlton go 'much deeper' than the coach. 'Carlton is influenced so much by outside money men, but if they are that concerned about the club they should jump on the board and do something about it and be accountable, instead of potting it from a distance,' Malthouse said. 'I mean, is there any coach who has survived more than five years in the last 20 years? 'I've been to six football clubs and when you walk into each one, you know it's different and has its own DNA, whether it be good, bad or indifferent. They see things differently. 'I've got a real soft spot for St Kilda but they just can't seem to get it together – one premiership ever. I go to West Coast, they were new, so you can set the agenda in many respects if you're strong enough early. 'Then I go to Collingwood who had roughly the same amount of premierships as Carlton, but (Eddie) McGuire never once mentioned the past. 'But he mentioned Olympic Park, where Melbourne were first cab off the rank if they wanted it but couldn't understand why you'd want a dog track for a football ground – but McGuire saw the future and we just spoke about where we wanted the place to be. 'Then I went to Carlton and they go, 'You know we've won 16 premierships' and I said, 'Well, I can only count one, because I only deal in AFL. 'No, we've won 16'. 'And then people who should have known better – the first luncheon, not the second, not the third, the first luncheon, a former player gets up and bags my selections for the side that I put out on the track for that first game – and you think, 'Wow – a former player has that sort of impact and then you meet with the board to deliver your football notes, and you think, 'My God, this is a really different place. I'm not saying it's bad, I'm not saying it's wrong. It's just different. 'But you can't keep thinking the past is going to save you for the future, you've got to create the future and that's what I found so different between Collingwood and Carlton and it doesn't appear that much has changed. 'They've got a dual Brownlow medallist, one of the best full backs and so it's just a different football club that has some wonderful people and I enjoyed the players while I was there, but it just doesn't understand that sometimes things are going to take time and that time needs a lot of energy and that energy needs support and if anyone of those things breakdown then the premiership coming next year is not going to come for a long time. 'All cultures, at every football club, are different. Malthouse broke Jock McHale's games coaching record of 714 games in 2015 before being dumped by the Blues weeks later. 'I could not have got two better people supporting me when I first arrived there. Stephen Kernahan is one of the most outstanding people I've ever met in football and Greg Swann, his history speaks for itself, but within 12 months, they were both telling me they have to go. 'So, stability is not exactly their strong point. 'There is just something fundamentally different there. The one thing you know as a coach is it's a carousel. You jump on and you're going to get flung off, you rarely step off it. That's just the nature of the game, but when you're on it, you'd like to think that you'd have the right support. 'Carlton is very much a club where the tail is wagging the dog.' Asked how Carlton could fix the problem, Malthouse said: 'I don't know how you fix it. 'What they probably need is a McGuire-type to go in there and say, 'This is about us now'. 'The core thing is football, not business deals, not in 1995 we won the premiership or in 1981 and 1982. 'I didn't hear Kernahan talking like that and he was the president. He should have stayed. He was a ripping bloke. A ripping bloke, but it goes much deeper. 'They can't just sit back and get rid of Michael Voss and think that is going to save everything.'
Sydney Morning Herald
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
2003: Disgraceful Magpies took footy fans for a ride
Last year in the big one, Mick Malthouse's men were brave. They were entitled to shed a few tears after a narrow defeat. There were no tears shed late Saturday afternoon, and nor should there have been, because the team effort was disgraceful. Instead of tears shed, there should be some arses kicked. Every second of a grand final is heavily scrutinised. There should be some mightily embarrassed Collingwood players. While Brisbane stood firm, Collingwood flinched. Shane Woewodin and James Clement chose not to play with reckless abandon. Nor did Rhyce Shaw. They chose at times to look and consider. Now they will have long summers to do plenty of considering. Richard Cole, backing back, dropped too many marks. He could have made a name for himself by going back uncompromisingly hard into the unknown. But he did not. He chose to tread warily instead. Shane Wakelin allowed himself to be too easily brushed aside in physical contests and Alan Didak got off line when crunch time came. Brodie Holland is a good frontrunner. When his team is up, he goes well. When the team struggles, so does he. Jason Cloke is yet to prove he can win a kick in a contest. Playing loose in defence is the easiest gig in town, as is coming in from behind to be third man up to fist the ball away in a marking or ruck situation. When given the chance to earn a kick as a key forward, Cloke could not cope. And Leon Davis is another frontrunner. And do not use size as an excuse, Leon. Get some tapes of John Platten and see what a big heart in a little body can do. Allan Jeans's speech to his players in the 1989 grand final is football folklore. Jeans told his players they would have to pay a price to win the premiership. That they did. Dermott Brereton, Robert DiPierdomenico, Gary Ayres ... the list goes on. They put their lives on the line. We heard Simon Black, as he accepted the Norm Smith Medal, say that he would die for his teammates. Do not knock it. Because that's the way the Lions played. Collingwood did not. They either would not or could not. The coach will cop criticism for his selections and placements. He should not. He threw his faith in with youth (Tristen Walker, Cloke, Davis, Shaw and Cole). They did not measure up, but neither did most of the senior group. Leigh Matthews had it easy. He admitted himself, he is in awe of his men. How they dig so deep. Michael Voss sets the example. The rest would be embarrassed not to follow. Three premierships in a row makes Leigh's Lions the best team I have ever seen. They have to be favourites for next year's flag. As for the Magpies, I do not know where they go. They failed the ultimate test quite miserably. A whopping loss like that could set them back considerably. A dream run crashed ingloriously at the final hurdle. And let us hope there is no whingeing about Anthony Rocca's suspension. He got what he deserved. It was a stupid, costly, unnecessary, undisciplined act. Loading Mick, Eddie (McGuire), Balmey (Neil Balme), please tell him so. Do not let big Anthony feel he has been hard done by. There is no doubt the Magpies improved this season. There is also no doubt that, come crunch time, they were embarrassingly meek. Today, few Magpies will have physical pain. It's the mental pain that is the problem. That will last forever.
The Age
15-05-2025
- Sport
- The Age
2003: Disgraceful Magpies took footy fans for a ride
Last year in the big one, Mick Malthouse's men were brave. They were entitled to shed a few tears after a narrow defeat. There were no tears shed late Saturday afternoon, and nor should there have been, because the team effort was disgraceful. Instead of tears shed, there should be some arses kicked. Every second of a grand final is heavily scrutinised. There should be some mightily embarrassed Collingwood players. While Brisbane stood firm, Collingwood flinched. Shane Woewodin and James Clement chose not to play with reckless abandon. Nor did Rhyce Shaw. They chose at times to look and consider. Now they will have long summers to do plenty of considering. Richard Cole, backing back, dropped too many marks. He could have made a name for himself by going back uncompromisingly hard into the unknown. But he did not. He chose to tread warily instead. Shane Wakelin allowed himself to be too easily brushed aside in physical contests and Alan Didak got off line when crunch time came. Brodie Holland is a good frontrunner. When his team is up, he goes well. When the team struggles, so does he. Jason Cloke is yet to prove he can win a kick in a contest. Playing loose in defence is the easiest gig in town, as is coming in from behind to be third man up to fist the ball away in a marking or ruck situation. When given the chance to earn a kick as a key forward, Cloke could not cope. And Leon Davis is another frontrunner. And do not use size as an excuse, Leon. Get some tapes of John Platten and see what a big heart in a little body can do. Allan Jeans's speech to his players in the 1989 grand final is football folklore. Jeans told his players they would have to pay a price to win the premiership. That they did. Dermott Brereton, Robert DiPierdomenico, Gary Ayres ... the list goes on. They put their lives on the line. We heard Simon Black, as he accepted the Norm Smith Medal, say that he would die for his teammates. Do not knock it. Because that's the way the Lions played. Collingwood did not. They either would not or could not. The coach will cop criticism for his selections and placements. He should not. He threw his faith in with youth (Tristen Walker, Cloke, Davis, Shaw and Cole). They did not measure up, but neither did most of the senior group. Leigh Matthews had it easy. He admitted himself, he is in awe of his men. How they dig so deep. Michael Voss sets the example. The rest would be embarrassed not to follow. Three premierships in a row makes Leigh's Lions the best team I have ever seen. They have to be favourites for next year's flag. As for the Magpies, I do not know where they go. They failed the ultimate test quite miserably. A whopping loss like that could set them back considerably. A dream run crashed ingloriously at the final hurdle. And let us hope there is no whingeing about Anthony Rocca's suspension. He got what he deserved. It was a stupid, costly, unnecessary, undisciplined act. Loading Mick, Eddie (McGuire), Balmey (Neil Balme), please tell him so. Do not let big Anthony feel he has been hard done by. There is no doubt the Magpies improved this season. There is also no doubt that, come crunch time, they were embarrassingly meek. Today, few Magpies will have physical pain. It's the mental pain that is the problem. That will last forever.
