West Coast Premiership Captain, Shannon Hurn, joined Scott Cummings and Tim Gossage to reflect on Adam Simpson's time at the club and the impact he had on the playing group.
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SEN WA Breakfast
"I would like him to coach one more game" - Shannon Hurn (10/07/2024)
"My dad works in B2B marketing. "He came by my school for career day "and said he was a big row as man. "Then he told everyone how much he loved "calculating his return on ad spend. "My friend's still laughing me to this day." - Not everyone gets B2B, but with LinkedIn, you'll be able to reach people who do. Get $100 credit on your next ad campaign. Go to linkedin.com/results to claim your credit. That's linkedin.com/results. Terms and conditions apply. Linked in, the place to be, to be. - Ryan Reynolds here from Mint Mobile. With the price of just about everything going up during inflation, we thought we'd bring our prices down. So to help us, we brought in a reverse auctioneer, which is apparently a thing. - Mint Mobile unlimited, premium wireless. Have it to get 30, 30, 30, you gotta get 20, 20, 20, you gotta get 20, 20, you gotta get 15, 15, 15, just 15 bucks a month, so. - Give it a try at Mint Mobile.com/switch. - $45 up for three months plus taxes and fees. Promoting for new customers for limited time. Unlimited more than 40 gigabytes per month. Slowest, full turns at Mint Mobile.com. - I had what was 18. It was just a fantastic moment in time for us. I know you don't wanna be your identity connected to premierships, but our players, what they went through that year, the journey they were on. Yeah, to lose a few players, and really feel for Fandry Gaff and Shep and Eric McKenzie and Nick Knapp, those guys who are a big part of that year, but yeah, to see the guys win a premiership and our supporters, it was such a good time. So yeah, I can't wait for the 10 year year. - He spoke so glowingly about his time at the West Coast. He goes, and of course that is being the pinnacle, winning the flag in 2018. And he held the premiership a couple off with our next guest, Shannon Hearn, who joins us to reflect on Adam Simpson's time at the Foody Club and possibly that news that came through yesterday that he's a coach no more. - Shannon, appreciate your time. You're on the farm, they tell us in South Australia. - Yeah, good day, Tim Scott. Yep, yeah, back in South Australia. Just helping out doing a bit of land tailing at the moment, so it's been good. - What was your vibe yesterday when the news came through that the club and Adam had reached a mutual decision to a part company? - Yeah, well, it'd been no secret, obviously, the last year and a half. The club's been under pressure and playing group and the coaching group in Simo. So I wouldn't say it's as much as a surprise, but it's just one of those things that I think there was going to be a decision coming along the time, whether it's continued going on or look for a new path. But one of the things I think is, you know, the last year and a half shouldn't be looked at so much as a youth coaching because he's, what was his first seven or eight years, apart from the first year's finals, grand finals, premiership. - So he's been a fantastic coach, just that this hasn't worked out well for him, playing group in the club the last three years, how we would have, you know, liked it to have gone. - But obviously all the conversations about Simo and whether he should go or shouldn't have gone and his tenure, from a player's point of view, how much responsibility do the players need to take and how do they respond to this? Well, the coach is gone. So at the end of the day, it doesn't matter, but do they, does that sit amongst them and say, hey, this is our fault too. And we need to do something. - Yeah, well, you know, you've been around fully, long enough from fully clubs and how it works. And it's never just one person or one department's fault or problem. I do think as a playing group, it's always, you know, you're out there playing, you need to take ownership of your own performance and how you prepare and playing well as a team. And then the club and the coaches are there to help facilitate that. And that's the thing I think Simo has been fantastic in that journey. And in the last three years, you know, it's probably been a younger list. Some of the senior players haven't been on play as well. So they're educating still been there, but it's probably just coming from a bit further back. So it didn't show on the footy field as much. But, you know, certainly, I always think as a player, it was always going out there to perform as best you can. That's for, you know, for the club and then for the coach. So, you know, it's a whole, most of that's a whole club thing. It's a, you know, coaching, trying to get better, players trying to get better. And that's what, yeah, I believe it's been napping this year, started well. And in the last few weeks, just, you know, just fell off a little bit. - Do you think there needs to be a culture change starting with the playing group and attitudes from the playing group? Or do you think that's already started and it's in good nick at the moment? - Yeah, well, I'm not there anymore, Scott. But I think, you know, the way I was always brought up and the belief is always, you know, when I started team effort, it's, I include the coaching department, the whole fitness side in that and the players. So it's not necessarily a whole culture thing, but I think it is certainly one of those things where you need to eat each week, prepare well. You need to make sure you're looking after yourself and giving yourself the best, I suppose the best chances to be able to play well and fulfill your role game day. So each player can look at that themselves whether they think they're doing it or they could do better. And that'll be something that the club, like I know last year, when I was still there, the club was working towards doing, which I think was good. And that'll always be on going forward. - Shannon, I guess, premiership, winning captain alongside Adam Simpson, the premiership winning coach. Shannon, just in regards to the premiership team, and we just heard Adam there in the joy that 2018 brought him and the club and all the fans, which is, you know, part and parcel of winning a flag. Do you think he has been too loyal to a lot of those premiership winning players? Do you think, and again, not say you're not there now, so it's different, but at selection, do you think he's always given the premiership players just a little bit more rope than others? - Yeah, well, that's the thing when you're, you know, coaching sometimes, it's either a toilet oil, or you're not loyal enough. So, yeah, again, from my point of view, I think that period of what, well, 2015 to '19 was fantastic. You know, the coaching group that we had, but similar way implemented game style game plans, 'cause I always changed a fair bit over that five-year period. They just would've been nice if we snatched another one there or made another grand final. But you go with what players have done, I think, a little bit in their time for you. I think you always keep backing the players in, and you keep working with them, and you keep getting them to make sure they keep improving. Certainly if there's a point where there's, well, I don't know, don't say not improving, but if there's a point where it's just the same, same, same, well, you gotta make a decision, but Simmo was having those conversations as was the club, as was playing group. So, I don't, I wouldn't say he's being too loyal. I think he's had it just about right. - Made of US elections. They're on, it's all about endorsements. I want a former premiership captain winning endorsement from you, who would you, if you got to pick someone now, without any interviews or anything like that, you've got to endorse a new coach. You know, you've got big sway down at the footy club, banger, who you endorsing. - Well, both of you guys could coach, put your hand up, give it a go. - Well, Goss has tried that. And his approach probably wouldn't go down well with the playing group right now. They're a little thin skinned for Goss's approach. - Yeah, right. Well, you know, look, I think, you know, I don't know, a few names have been thrown around a little bit. And there seems to be some quite good potential coaches out there. I've been fortunate, I think people have spoken about it with the West Coast connection. You know, I was fortunate to have a few years with Ash Hanson, who's been at Bulldogs in their Carlton. Obviously, Dean Cox gets thrown around. Yeah, he was fantastic for the playing group, but I was there doing a great job in Sydney. Yeah, but also, Jamie Graham. Well, I think he was one of our six years at the club, seven years at the club as a coach. So those three players, three players, those three coaches I can comment on. And I think, you know, they would all be fantastic, but I certainly know there's other coaches out there as well, they've done quite a good job through their period of time and in AFL. So, you know, Cox is always one that gets thrown around and we'll always get thrown around as being probably the main candidate. But that's what the club and the board will decide. They'll go on their interviews and see how it all works out and what the fit that they want. What do you want as a former premiership, or as a premiership captain of the football club, what do you want to see in the next seven weeks? Well, well, well, see more wins would be obviously nice. Oh, look, I think the playing group in the club have shown where they're aiming to go and some of the direction that they want to get to. And that's still end of the day gets shown up on the field. Like that's where the results are. But I think behind the scenes, they would be trying to implement a few different, different, you know, like fitness that they've been doing last year. The new fitness coach, some of the high performance, they would be implementing some new structures on skills, decision-making game plan. And then I think in the last seven weeks, people talk about it. But I think it's just making sure we can try to play as a team, well, they can play as a team, be consistent over four quarters. And probably, you know, and once they go play with some conferences, sometimes when there's a change of a coach who happens everywhere and across the league, sometimes they can just be that freedom and the game just gets taken on. So I think they'll probably play up over the next seven weeks and it'll be great if there's a few more wins in there along the way. - Last one for you and four, let you go. And we appreciate your time, Shannon. Just the offer, albeit very clunky yesterday, to coach the last game, his last game this week, which would time for the most games coach, second most games coach alongside McMoldhouse. Of course, there's a club legend, dual-premiseship winning coach. Do you, again, you're not going to answer for Adam as a player. As a player, if you're in that group right now, and Adam and making a decision to coach one more time, do you, would you like that? Or do you think it's time to cut the chord? - I think, I think I'd lean towards liking it. I don't think it would be an issue, like either way, and I know that's, looks people start sitting on the fence, but I think I'd like him to coach one more game, but it is up to him whether he feels like he wants to or have the energy. But I think certainly the players and fans in the club would love to be able to, I don't know if they send him off, like acknowledge his time at the club, you know, like I said before, 11 years, find all those final series, seven years, or seven years or six years in a row. And as I said, he was fantastic. And through that four day and when he first came in, teaching a different style of play where the game was going, we made a grand final in 15. Just should've done something else here in 16 and 17. One and 18 and just nine and didn't work out. Like from my point of view, he's just been a fantastic coach and helped me understand about the game. So I think people would like to see him coach one more time, but that'll be up to him and see what he wants to do. - Appreciate your time. So what are you doing? - He's lamb tailing. - What's that mean? - Well, he's making sure the lambs will be healthy going forward for anyone who gets a bit scared about that sort of stuff. - Well, yeah, well said, come on. - Thank you. - Okay. Are you still living here? You're still West Australia? - Yeah, you're still West Australia. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. You're still West Australia. (laughing) - Thank you, you're fast forward. - Thanks for joining us. Appreciate it. - Thanks very much, guys. - Shannon, her in premiership.