Essendon coach Brad Scott has moved to clarify his post-game comments from last Sunday regarding Nate Caddy.
The fourth-year Bombers coach also said he’s “been here before” with regards to external pressure on his job, claiming the heat doesn’t faze him.
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Following the 63-point loss to Port Adelaide in Round 2 — which prompted a players-only meeting in the aftermath — Scott remarked that his side was “demoralised” after Caddy, running into an open goalsquare in the second quarter, grazed the post with his kick.
Scott was criticised for singling out the 20-year-old Caddy, who kicked four goals from 12 disposals and was ultimately voted as ‘player of the match’ by his teammates.
AFL 360 co-host Garry Lyon said he “didn’t like the singling out of Caddy”, while Essendon legend Tim Watson called Scott’s comments “inflammatory”.
Addressing reporters on Thursday morning at the Hangar, an under-siege Scott offered an explanation for his comments.
“Post-game, particularly after a loss like that, you’ve got to think about who I’m talking to — and in the majority of a post-game press conference, I’m talking to the players,” Scott began.
“But, I’ve already spoken to the players post-game, and (in the presser) I’m speaking to the players first and foremost, and our fans after that.
“But in terms of Nate Caddy and selfishness, I spoke to Nate at half-time, I spoke to Nate post-game, I spoke to the players post-game, and then did a post-game press conference. So, they are crystal clear as to what I’m talking about.
“But for everyone else — and I’m not always going to do this — if you make a mistake and you get demoralised by it, and more importantly if the rest of the team gets demoralised by it, you’re being selfish, because you’re thinking about yourself and not the team.
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“So, be disappointed, but get back into the contest — and that’s part of the area of growth for us as a team.”
Scott revealed that Caddy was in fact voted by his teammates as Essendon’s best player last Sunday, going on to laud his growth over just a six-month span.
“So, what Nate Caddy did in the second half … both at the game, post-game and in review — where the players voted for ‘Cadds’ as their player of the week, not because of his four goals in the second half, but because of his response to what he said in his own words was an ‘embarrassing moment’,” Scott continued.
“And I was harder on the team in terms of their reaction to that miss in the second half, but ‘Cadds’, he has grown before our eyes in one week, so where he is right now compared to where he was six months ago is chalk and cheese.
“And so that’s the reason why players like Caddy — I could reel off a whole lot of others — why I’m so optimistic about this group, because they’re made of the right stuff.”
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The Bombers have lost their opening two games against Hawthorn and Port Adelaide by more than 10 goals, with a problematic team defence rearing its head early in the season.
And after a cataclysmic injury plague swept the club last year, it hasn’t managed a win since last May.
But when he was asked how he was personally coping with the arduous start to the campaign, Scott said he was “fine”.
“I’ve been here before, and I know the way out,” Scott defiantly said.
“It’s not about me. And post-game, I’m trying to preach a culture of ‘invest in the team at all costs’. Don’t be selfish.
“It’s not about me. What will be will be. When you’re a head coach, it ends at some point. It’s just a matter of how and when.
“We’re all going to die at some point, too. You don’t spend your whole time thinking about it.”
The Bombers have a golden opportunity to win their first game of the season this Saturday night, pitted against North Melbourne — over whom they’ve won their past 12 games.