Robert Walls believes Collingwood coach Craig McRae is “a mile ahead” of all the other AFL coaches.
McRae has revitalised the Magpies since arriving in September 2021.
The three-time Brisbane premiership player led the club from 17th to the Preliminary Final last year and has them sitting a game clear on top of the ladder through seven rounds in 2023.
Carlton premiership coach and three-time flag winning player Walls has been impressed by the what McRae has been able to achieve in a short space of time.
He loves the way McRae has endeared himself to the media and has been particularly taken by the way he has managed to get his Pies to play for him.
“I think Craig McRae is a mile ahead of all of them,” Walls said on SEN Breakfast.
“Thank goodness, he’s a breath of fresh air. Not just the way that he coaches his team, but the way that he approaches the media, he’s positive, he’s pleasant, and you can see that he lets his emotions run free.
“I love that vision of him when they won that game (over Adelaide) the other day and he was hugging his players on the interchange bench.
“I just think that he’s the model at the moment.”
Walls also commended Collingwood’s senior group which includes the likes of captain Darcy Moore, Scott Pendlebury, Steele Sidebottom, Taylor Adams, Brayden Maynard and the injured Jeremy Howe, among others.
He says the leadership of that group helps bring the remainder of the team along for the ride.
“I’ve always been a great believer to a very large extent that a coach is only as good as the quality of his senior six or seven players,” he added.
“If you’ve got a quality six or seven senior players who, 1) can play the game well, 2) can think and 3) are good role models on and off the field, well, the rest will follow.
“You only have to look at Collingwood and the players and leadership there, there’s probably a dozen of them who just set the standard.
“Even a young fella like Nick Daicos is only in his second year who just does everything positively.
“Often the strength of a team is the quality of the last five or six who get a game, but if you’re at Collingwood and whoever they are, they’d be saying, ‘Wow, how good are these blokes who are leading us out each week’.
“You only have to look at them and the way that they play and they inspire you.”
The Magpies will look to improve their 6-1 record when they host the Sydney Swans at the MCG on Sunday.
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