FORMER St Kilda coach Alan Richardson was recruited to Melbourne to work closely with Simon Goodwin in 2020.
And after spending the past six months by his side, Richardson is confident the Dees have the perfect man to lead them into the future.
“He’s an impressive person, with respect to coaching,” Richardson said on the club’s Inside Melbourne podcast.
“He’s got a great understanding of the game; he’s got brilliant relationships with the players.
“I think if he didn’t have that latter skill, then last year could have been incredibly awkward – to go into the season with high expectations [and] to not live up to those expectations.
“But to see the spirit and the energy in the group was still so strong when we got back is testament to the fact he has got really close connection with his players, in particular his leaders.
“The way that he’s worked through a change of leadership has been really impressive to watch – that’s always a big issue at times in footy clubs and he’s handled that brilliantly.”
Goodwin received plenty of criticism from both fans and the media following Melbourne’s 17th placed finish in 2019, but the changes he’s made to the football program pave the way for some dramatic improvement this season.
“He’s made some adjustments to the way that we’re going to play and the way that he’s steered and supported his coaches through a pretty challenging time … has been first class,” Richardson said.
And when it comes to the weekend, Goodwin takes a measured approach.
“Game day, I’ve only seen one, but he’s a very composed coach,” Richardson said.
“He’s looking for ideas, he’s looking for suggestions.
“He doesn’t like commentators in the box – he’s the only one that can go off his head and he’s made that pretty clear to the boys.
“It’s only early but he’s going really well.”
For more insights from Richardson about the inner workings of the club, listen to this week’s episode of Inside Melbourne.
