Have a look at Chris Fagan’s latest toy – no wonder he’s in such a hurry to show it off
Such are the job projections for American football coaches, the running joke is that NFL is only ever a shortening of “Not For Long”. It’s not so different in the major Australian footy codes, writes Jim Tucker
Lions coach Chris Fagan is seen celebrating with fans after returning to Brighton Homes Arena in Brisbane, Sunday, September 29, 2024. Brisbane has claimed their first AFL premiership in more than two decades with a 60-point win over the Sydney Swans in the AFL grand final. (AAP Image/Darren England) NO ARCHIVING
You certainly feel it through the radically different fortunes of Kevin Walters and trophy-holder Chris Fagan in recent days. Queensland Reds coach Les Kiss, departing Dolphins coach Wayne Bennett and new Brisbane Roar coach Ruben Zadkovich are in periods of relative tranquility.
Between them, this trio are either coming off an upbeat debut season of growth, heading to a new challenge after impressively creating a new club’s DNA or living the honeymoon period before a first game in charge.
Walters’ time at the Brisbane Broncos ended suddenly in the final week of September. Feel a little for Jason Demetriou. He didn’t even survive into May this year before being axed as head coach by South Sydney.
Betting agencies routinely post markets in February on who will be the first coach in the AFL or NRL to be sacked. Brutal right?
Coaching at the highest level is a pressure job where results are king. It’s best you smell the roses when you can because off-seasons are shorter than ever. You are on the new season-new dreams wagon very quickly.
That’s why the unscripted Fagan moment this week was just about the coaching moment of the year.
After the heady celebrations and fanfare of the Brisbane Lions’ grand final victory last Saturday, the AFL premiership trophy ended up at Fagan’s home in the leafy eastern suburbs of Brisbane.
It seems Fagan just went for a stroll with the trophy under a towel. He was heading somewhere but was happy to show off the bauble to any lucky locals who may have been about.
Social media being what it is, the joy of the trophy just doing a lap of the streets was captured soon enough. One joyous AFL Fantasy afficionado couldn’t believe it when the trophy, champagne-tinged ribbons and all, entered his universe.
A photo of Fagan, the trophy and his mum-in-law appeared on his phone. “My mother-in-law was just out walking her dog and sent me this … love the idea of the old boy wandering round the park showing his coffee pals what he got up to at the weekend like he is showing photos of his grandkids #AFLGrandFinal #BrisbaneLions,” tapped @KentKoalasAFL.
My mother-in-law was just out walking her dog and sent me this… love the idea of the old boy wandering round the park showing his coffee pals what he got up to at the weekend like he is showing photos of his grandkids #AFLGrandFinal #AFL #BrisbaneLions pic.twitter.com/WLlvReCRkg
— Kent Koalas (@kentkoalasafl) October 1, 2024
If it’s the joyous pinnacle of more than three decades in coaching, you can do whatever you like.
Players may earn the “superstars and legends” tags in footy, many prematurely or as flawed heroes. It’s the coach who sets the standards and is the mouthpiece of your club with very little room for a misstep.
Players regularly have shots at redemption. Many coaches tend to get a shot at redemption … at another club after being fired.
Look to the English Premier League. Former Brisbane Roar manager Ange Postecoglou is either the Messiah after leading Tottenham to a 3-0 rout of Manchester United or some Aussie grim reaper when Spurs trip up.
The vitriol of Spurs fans is off the charts at times. As the famous quote goes, it’s just as well that “Aussie Ange” learnt long ago to treat the emotional tilts from winning or losing as imposters in the same cloak.
The NRL grand final in Sydney this weekend will be a masterclass moment for Craig Bellamy if the Melbourne Storm coach can conjure a victory over Penrith.
These are the elite coaching moments where the strings he pulls with plays and players can change the course of NRL history. His greatness is maintaining the rage at the Storm as a trendsetting club beyond the Billy Slater-Cam Smith-Cooper Cronk era, when some quickfire judges suggested it was all to do with the one-off players at his disposal.
Whoever invented the “footy season” almost got it just right. One week longer and it’s overkill, one month shorter and we’re crying for more.
When Monday arrives, sports lovers will be looking for their summer sporting fix, be it cricket, the Wallabies on a rare “Grand Slam” tour of Europe, the tennis and so on.
A lot will be said about players deserving a break on Monday after the manic demands of the NRL, AFL and the domestic season for the Wallabies coming to a close.
Maybe, spare a thought for the coaches too. They will have the shortest off-season of anyone. Minds will already be ticking over about plans, tweaks, new ideas and finding more from the same faces for 2025.
Players have a Mad Monday to end the season. In different forms, there are some coaches who feel they are caught in a Mad Monday every week of the season.
Jim Tucker has specialised in sport, the wider impacts and features for most of his 40 years writing in the media.