Is it time for Voss to go?
How much time can a stellar playing career buy you as a coach? Plenty, according to the Brisbane Lions board.
Michael Voss is four games into his fifth season as coach of the club he captained to three premierships. He played 289 games between 1992 and 2006, won five club champion awards and tied with current Essendon coach James Hird for the 1996 Brownlow Medal. A fearless leader and an unrelenting competitor, Voss will go down as one of the AFL’s greatest players.
But his coaching career has been underwhelming to say the least and the Lions seem to be willing to give their favourite son as much time as possible to bring the club back up the ladder.
After taking the Brisbane to its first finals appearance in five years in 2009, the Lions have struggled to be competitive and remain relevant in the football community. A disastrous 2010 season where million-dollar recruit Brendan Fevola brought the club to its knees with his off-field antics was followed by just four wins the next year. Any other coach would have been shown the door long before the end of 2011.
Voss’ misguided recruiting strategy at the end of the 2009 season had failed spectacularly, but there were signs of better times to come after 10 wins in 2012 and a good crop of youngsters coming through.
However, the hope and buoyant expectation for 2013 was extinguished in one afternoon of football in round one. The lack of effort and will for the contest Lions players showed against the Western Bulldogs on Easter Saturday has flowed on to affect their whole season.
Voss has a 38.59% winning record after 92 games in charge and that looks like dropping even further with the Lions having a horror run from rounds 6-14, with games against Sydney, Essendon, Collingwood, Geelong and Hawthorn.
A developing team has to show progression from season to season, but Voss’ Lions have gone backwards yet again.
With last month’s NAB Cup grand final victory now a distant memory, this time the Lions board have to act with their head, not their heart.
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