TonyK
CibbuanoDockers not in crisis: Pavlich
April 19th 2009 05:26
FREMANTLE skipper Matthew Pavlich has dismissed suggestions his club is in crisis.
The Dockers,who have lost their first four games of the season, have made their worst start to an AFL season since 2001 when they lost their first 17 games and eventually won the wooden spoon.
Speaking on Channel Seven's Game Day show, Pavlich denied the club is the laughing stock of the AFL.
"A laughing stock, I find that very hard to believe," he said.
"I think maybe back in 2000/2001 when I first arrived and we lost a huge amount of money off the field and we really struggling to get revenue and we weren't great on the field - maybe then there was an opportunity to label the club as not going so well."
Pavlich's comments come after the Dockers were held to their second lowest score - 4.4 (28) - in the 83-point loss to St Kilda at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night.
Pavlich put his side's current woes down to a lack of experience and saiid it was up to Fremantle's middle tier players to lift the club.
"We have lost about 1500 games of experience (following the retirements of Peter Bell, Heath Black, Matthew Carr, Jeff Farmer, Mark Johnson and Shaun McManus and the move of Josh Carr back to Port Adelaide at the end of last season) and we drafted in 14 new players," he said.
"Right now we are in a phase that will take a bit of time and the club is committed to playing the younger players."
"The improvement has to come from guys like Byron Schammer, Ryan Crowley, Michael Johnson and Steven Dodd - guys that are between three and seven years into the system."
"There is no question there also has to be some good leadership and some good direction but that core group in the middle is where the improvement has to come from."
Pavlich also said coach Mark Harvey - who has coached Fremantle to just 10 wins in 33 matches since taking over the job from Chris Connollly in the second half of 2007 - was not in any danger of losing his job as he said everyone at the the club was responsible for the poor start to 2009.
"When you are zip and four we are all under pressure and he (Harvey) has to keep working hard as does the (player) leadership group and everyone else," Pavlich said.
"But we are committed to playing the younger guys and understand it (improvement) could take a little bit of time."
The Dockers,who have lost their first four games of the season, have made their worst start to an AFL season since 2001 when they lost their first 17 games and eventually won the wooden spoon.
Speaking on Channel Seven's Game Day show, Pavlich denied the club is the laughing stock of the AFL.
"A laughing stock, I find that very hard to believe," he said.
"I think maybe back in 2000/2001 when I first arrived and we lost a huge amount of money off the field and we really struggling to get revenue and we weren't great on the field - maybe then there was an opportunity to label the club as not going so well."
Pavlich's comments come after the Dockers were held to their second lowest score - 4.4 (28) - in the 83-point loss to St Kilda at Etihad Stadium on Saturday night.
Pavlich put his side's current woes down to a lack of experience and saiid it was up to Fremantle's middle tier players to lift the club.
"We have lost about 1500 games of experience (following the retirements of Peter Bell, Heath Black, Matthew Carr, Jeff Farmer, Mark Johnson and Shaun McManus and the move of Josh Carr back to Port Adelaide at the end of last season) and we drafted in 14 new players," he said.
"Right now we are in a phase that will take a bit of time and the club is committed to playing the younger players."
"The improvement has to come from guys like Byron Schammer, Ryan Crowley, Michael Johnson and Steven Dodd - guys that are between three and seven years into the system."
"There is no question there also has to be some good leadership and some good direction but that core group in the middle is where the improvement has to come from."
Pavlich also said coach Mark Harvey - who has coached Fremantle to just 10 wins in 33 matches since taking over the job from Chris Connollly in the second half of 2007 - was not in any danger of losing his job as he said everyone at the the club was responsible for the poor start to 2009.
"When you are zip and four we are all under pressure and he (Harvey) has to keep working hard as does the (player) leadership group and everyone else," Pavlich said.
"But we are committed to playing the younger guys and understand it (improvement) could take a little bit of time."
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