‘Neuter Dog’ Ross Lyon teaches Harley Reid old tricks to win battle for St Kilda | AFL

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The West Coast young gun started the AFL clash full of confidence and cheek until he was given a leg or two by the Saints and their coach

St Kilda coach Ross Lyon gave an interview at half-time against West Coast with the enthusiasm of a man booking a six-hour canal operation. It was trending on Twitter. – To throw Lyon. Ross is ruining footy. Saints cannot be chased. was the general theme. They had just given up two late goals and the lead. Harley Reid, with 17 touches and seven sacks, was lighting it up.

Lyon recently compared himself to a neutered dog. When he said it, he had the pitiful look of a St. Bernard who had just had the cruelest cut. On and off the field, he can no longer exert the same influence he once did. Coaching has changed so much and the frustration of guys like Lyon and Clarkson is palpable.

They can’t rule like a dictator anymore – they’d lose the current generation of players in a week if they tried. And they don’t have the same levers to manipulate the game during a game. The 6-6-6 rule and restricted use of runners stifled this.

Players like Scott Pendlebury, who double as on-field coaches, are worth their weight in gold. Coaches need what Mark Thompson used to call “mini versions of me” and there aren’t many of them at St Kilda.

But as Lyon says, it’s easier to destroy than to create, and there’s still room for good old fashioned repression. It has a history with labels. Clinton Jones had his work cut out for him every week at St Kilda and Ryan Crowley used highly unorthodox methods to drive opposition midfielders crazy for years at Fremantle.

“Reid lit them up, so we’re going to put time on him,” Lyon said. This was not “cooler”. Marcus Windhager parked himself in Reid’s back pocket for an hour, covering him, frustrating him, humiliating him and helping him deliver four badly needed points.

Harley Reid is already a sizable presence on the football field. He throws his weight around and shows no respect for the elders in the opposition. “Trust and cheek,” he calls it.

Superstar juniors often get a rude shock at the senior level. They are found and worked. But in less than a dozen games, Reid sat and ran away from champions, North Smith medalists and 300 players.

That confidence, that cheek and that raw power was epitomized in one passage of the game two weeks ago when he ran, head up and tongue out, from Melbourne midfielder Christian Petracca. The extravagance of his jumping technique at full speed chasing one of the best footballers of his generation was a sight to behold. That’s why the Eagles, who were playing park level football not too long ago, are now one to watch every weekend. Whenever Reid gets the ball, the boos at Optus Stadium turn into a low-level scream.

This is a young player who has been celebrated throughout his junior career, who has clubs offering $2 million offers and who has been built into the Perth press like no one since Ben Cousins.

But he was taken down a peg or two over the weekend. He had just three touches in the second half. Kicked four frees, including a free into the ground, which gave St Kilda the seal. Harassed and wobbled petulantly, he probably cost himself the Rising Star award when he threw Darcy Wilson down the field.

Reid will collect far more prestigious awards. After all, both Toby Greene and Dustin Martin were ineligible for the award and turned out ok. But now he has a target on his back.

Lyon Saints, as always, did it the hard way. As always, the effort was there. First quarter aside, it was an entertaining contest. They won it with Windhager’s tag, Mason Wood’s tank and Jack Steele’s 15 tackles. But it threw up all the usual question marks – the lack of stars and potency up front and most glaringly, the simple midfield.

This round featured some tremendous midfield talent – ​​Nick Daicos’ opener, Reid’s second spell, Patrick Cripps’ five-minute burst and Marcus Bontempelli’s full game. But Lyon have none of that level of talent. After his midfield was trounced by Josh Kelly, Tom Green and co from GWS in last year’s elimination final, he bemoaned the lack of stars. “I can’t go to Woolworths on Glenhuntly Rd and buy one,” he said.

Lyon have a few more tricks up their sleeve, as they demonstrated at half-time. But the most important levers at a football club are beyond a manager these days. They are in recruiting, list management and attracting free agents, areas where St Kilda has not excelled in a long time. This is why, in interviews, Lyon oscillates between ridiculous, mournful and castrated, a man who can still win the battle but is losing the war.