Garry Lyon has backed David Teague’s staunch defence of his own coaching job at Carlton.
On Thursday, Teague made a plea to the club as speculation about his position continues to intensify with findings of the club’s football department review set to be received.
He revealed that Richmond’s Damien Hardwick, who endured a similar situation in 2016, reached out to him while imploring the Blues to stay on the path they took steps down when he was hired full-time in 2019.
“I’m really hopeful that our club back me in and have the courage to stick to the course and to finish what we started,” Teague, who is contracted until 2022, told reporters.
“I really believe in what we’re doing, I really believe in this playing group and where we’re going.”
In response to those comments, Lyon says he fully supports the way Teague went about it.
“I loved that. If you’re going to go down, go down swinging,” Lyon said on SEN Breakfast.
“He’s calling out the club. He’s saying, right, you’ve been down this path of just sacking coaches willy-nilly. What about having the courage to stick this through when it gets tough rather than go, ‘you’re the next one out’.
“Why don’t you do what Richmond did, who looked at it and said, ‘No, we’re going to back our coach in’. The Richmond coach himself has rung me and said I was in your position, look what happened to them, how about you have the courage and the balls to back me in.
“I love that.”
Was it a sign of desperation?
“No,” said Lyon vehemently.
“I think it was a sign of a bloke who has got a contract until the end of next year, who has committed to a contract in good faith, and says I’m going to see this out.
“He then started peeling off numbers about have a look at the win-loss record when I took over, have a look at the win-loss record now.”
Tim Watson believes it was almost Teague’s final stand to keep his position at the club.
“It was like a desperate plea or the last stand that he was making about his position as coach of the Carlton Football Club,” he said.
“You cast your mind back, Damien Hardwick at that time wasn’t saying that. He was talking about a young group of players, people can’t see it right now and none of us could at that time.
“I remember that year clearly. He was never forced to defend his position like David Teague is currently being forced to do.”
It is widely expected that Teague will finish the 2021 season as Carlton coach before the club makes new plans for next year and beyond.
