THIS week has been the longest one in the playing careers of the entire Griffith Blacks first grade team, after being hit between the eyes by several home truths by their coaching staff.
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Fresh off their humiliating 83-0 wipeout against the Albury Steamers, Griffith coaches declared they have had enough, and much of Tuesday’s training session was about putting a mirror up to show the players their sub-par performances and attitude off the field.
Griffith coach Clint Robertson has made his feelings known on several occasions about his side’s sloppy start to the SIRU season, but said their year starts this weekend at home against CSU.
“They’re a young team and most of them are between 22 and 26 years old, and Paul Batson and I have been around a bit and we have learnt some things good and bad,” Robertson said.
“So last night (Tuesday) was about imparting some of that knowledge, of what is the correct behaviour, whether it be in football or in life.
“The way you act on the football field, you emulate that in your life.”
The Blacks leader said it was not so much as a football problem with the team, but more an issue with their attitude and club pride, as they exhibited poor body language last weekend which was reflected on the scoreboard.
“I didn’t rant and rave about the lack of performance, we certainly told them that it’s not acceptable, but in between that we said their behaviour in general is not acceptable,” Robertson said.
“And we asked them if they’d accept that of somebody else and they all said no.
“We asked them how many of them had filled the water bottles up without being asked, how many of them have collected the jumpers at the end of the game without being asked, and nobody put their hand up.”
Griffith’s senior playing group was not spared as Robertson and Batson asked them to lead from the front and live up to their potential skill level.
“We told them if they don’t show the self-respect or the pride we’re asking for – there’s the gate, don’t come back,” he said.
“I took the newspaper with me and read snippets from the stories on the same page as them on Monday, that Group 20 showed passion and the Demons came back from a deficit to win, I told them they don’t show any of that and it’s starts here at training.”
The message struck the right note for the side and they ran the rest of Tuesday night’s training by themselves without Robertson once having to open his mouth.
But the big challenge comes this weekend as CSU come to town to try and extend the Blacks’ misery, but based on what he saw earlier this week, Robertson backed his men to breath fire for 80 minutes.
“They’re strong, but we’re going to belt CSU this weekend, simple as that, because it’s time to step up and I’m confident they will because they have the skill, they just need the self-belief they can do it,” he said.
Prop Junior Ashby did not train on Tuesday night because of a mild knee ligament strain, but is expected to be right to play on Saturday.
