Blight Gone

Legga · Joined: 10 Jun 2001 Location: Lilydale, Melbourne, Victoria

At 9.00 am today, I was told by a very reliable source at St. Kilda that Malcolm Blight had been sacked. If you log on to the Saints website, and into their forum, I posted this news under Pies1. Well, it appears the rumour is correct. Blighty is out, and Grant Thomas is in (for now). Also, another rumour about the Saints is that Andrew Plympton is taking legal action against the Saints over the "culture" comments made by Blight, and the Saints board is bracing themselves that Watson may take the same action. I don't think that it is ever nice to see these sorts of things go on at a football club, but at least this time it's not ours.

Kristin5 · Fiery Redhead Joined: 19 Apr 2001

Wow, is that true? St Kilda just seems to be stumbling from one disaster to another.

Kristin5 · Fiery Redhead Joined: 19 Apr 2001

Yeah, I know now - I've gone into the Saints site. They're all in shock - as you would be I guess. I wonder if we'll ever know the true story, cos we never did when it happened to Alves (just heaps of rumours and innuendo). I think the Board owes it to the members to tell them everything.

magpie joffa · Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2001 5:42 am

This is indeed sad news and i feel strongly for all st kilda supporters this may well be the end of the st kilda football club as we know it.To be honest i believe blight in some way is mentally ill.
This will devastate the st kilda faithful who believed only 8 months ago blight would deliver them from the wilderness its apparant blight is a person of many double standards on one hand he believes in a strong work ethic to build character and on the other hand he is a quitter when things dont go his way.

Its all very well basking in the sunlight as he did when he took adealaide to 2 premierships i reckon mr bean could have coached adelaide to those premierships.
When adelaide struggled not long after those premierships he walked out.So many people gather their inspiration from football people when in difficulties we often search the back of our minds for that cliche we heard on television or at a press conference from a coach or great player who will tell us football is very much like life and character and being honest and preparing to work hard to become a better person and a better footballer.

I dont care much for the st kilda football club but i do care for the many friends i have who bleed red white and black.

It will again be the fans that will hurt and hurt very badly..just as us collingwood people did not so long ago when it all looked hopeless and at times we wondered what the hell is going on,we were lucky we have committed people who want this club to succeed.

The st kilda football club will never recover from this as i said it may well be the end.

To all them st kilda supporters and to the friends i have who follow st kilda i feel for you but you gotta hang in there be strong be committed and right now you gotta support your sainters like never before.

Shame on you blight shame shame shame!!!!

COLLINGWOOD..simply the best...BETTER THAN ALL THE REST!!we will never forget our great number #42...GO YOU BLOODY PIES yeaaah LETS KICK ASS.lets kill the bloody bastards !!
http://www.mp3.com/joffa

mandy · Joined: 03 Jun 2001 Location: Glen Iris

Whoever the coach, whatever the team, it always seems to leave a bad taste in your mouth when some leaves a club mid-season.

Digs · Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2001 6:43 am

Blight is an idiot. And an arrogant one as well. Not sure of whether he's quit or been sacked but either way, if he's gonna be making the derogatory comments that he has been, then he's not doing much good for the club. I hate his tendency to publicly humiliate players (eg. Pittman at Adelaide) and for a young team, this is especially not the way to go.

If he quit, then he is weak for giving up so early and if he was sacked then I'm sure the Saints had a few pretty good reasons, apart from those that have been publicised, to do so.

THANK GOD WE GOT MALTY BOY!!!!!!!

Digs is your hook-up ....... hollar if ya hear me!

SS11 · Joined: 24 Jul 2000

he was sacked.

The room service guy · Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2001 7:17 am

I too feel sorry for the Saints. Ever since they sacked Alves its been downhill for them. They chose the wrong coach in Blighty. He's out for instant success and isn't patient enough for youngsters to learn and a group of new players to gel together. If the Saints are to succeed they need to take a leaf out of our book and play the youngsters, be patient and have a long term plan. But it all starts off the field. If they can become united and all be as positive as their president was the other nite on Talking Footy (if he was being genuine or just trying to hide the fact that they're in deep s**t), they could get out of this. But they're culture is such and they're supporters would be so peeved, that they're going to find it hard to survive. They're pretty much in denial that they have a problem. If you've only won 1 premiership in 105 yrs and gone from the top to the bottom in 4yrs, isn't their a big problem.
As i think he was sacked, what happens with Blighty's contract. Won't they have to pay him out, and if so, that's a helluva lotta dough.
As i heard on Adelaide radio just after i heard the news about Blight, "When the goin gets tough, Blighty gets goin"!!!
Apparently in '99 when the Crows started losing he quickly became frustrated and annoyed and barely lasted the season. The same has happened this yr, and he didn't last again. He didn't learn from his mistakes with the Crows and he has been partially responsible for sending that club backwards. He may have caused just as much damage to St.Kilda.

THE RUP IS ON FIRE!!!!!!!!!!

Kristin5 · Fiery Redhead Joined: 19 Apr 2001

From what I've heard, there is a clause in his contract which says that if either party is dissatisfied, they can get out. So, St Kilda has used this "out" clause, and now may not have to pay him out. Lucky, cos I'm not sure that they could afford to pay him out!

junkboy75 · Joined: 26 May 2001

sad for st.kilda, but I'll bet that freo are licking their chops.

"everyone's a winner hot pies"

Broadie · Joined: 10 Feb 1999 Location: VIC

Have to agree with that last comment from Kristin5 - it's spot on. St Kilda have not got "value for money" out of Blight, and the "get out" clause was put in with this particular case in mind. ABout the only smart thing St Kilda have done since the Lockett trade and subsequent success with Alves.

I totally disagree with the other comments about Blight. He IS (or was) an excellent coach, and Adelaide know how lucky they were to get him.

He has obviously seemed uninterested for the past 2 months, realising that coaching St Kilda isn't just about players but a whole mentality / culture problem. Obviously the St Kilda board could sense his dissatisfaction and coupled it with their own inability to handle the truth as Blight told it.

They need a "cheap" hard-nosed coach - I reckon Mark Harvey would be ideal. But maybe they've timed this to see if they can get in the running for Eade...

Broadie

The room service guy · Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2001 7:58 am

I'm not saying he's a bad coach, i just don't think that the way he's displayed his frustration publicly, and how he seems to not want to work through the bad with a club are why he hasn't lasted. That's one of the attrributes a senior coach needs these days. Skills and tactics can be delegated to assistants, but the senior coach is the main man who has to see long term and not just basically give up if there's no instant success.
I know he did a great with the Crows in his first two yrs, but can't you see where i'm coming from??

THE RUP IS ON FIRE!!!!!!!!!!

Spidergirl · Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2001 8:03 am

I think StKilda needs to bring a past champion in to take control instead of all these money hungry pretenders from other clubs all the time!

When i first started to follow Spider and the Saints i thought Stan Alves was one of the best coaches round but obviously StKilda players couldnt hack him so really they asked for this slide!

Fradam · Joined: 21 Jun 1999 Location: Bendigo, Victoria

I think I might stand up and defend Blight. I think he was a great coach, I don't always support his methods but at the end of the day he got the job done. You can't blame Blight for the saints only winning 3 games, they have a terrible list. I actually agreed with Malcom's comments too. St Kilda is being a little too sensitive. Frawley went to Richmond and told them their culture had to change and they embraced him, Blight does the same at St Kilda and they sack him. St Kilda will gain nothing by sacking Blight, they'll just get another yes man to do the job instead of having someone who had the guts to tell them where they're going wrong.I'm so glad I as a Collingwood member that I don't have to put up with crap like that.

Fradam Wrote This

The room service guy · Posted: Fri Jul 20, 2001 8:46 am

A past champ would be a good choice spidergirl, but who's out there? If only Trevor Barker was still around.
I'm trying to think of what they can do, but I think they're in big trouble. Someone like Mark Harvey is probably the right choice cos he's hungry for success and not for money.

THE RUP IS ON FIRE!!!!!!!!!!