damn skip, beat me to it by about 30 secs!!

Surely not? Close loss on the road to a decent team with a few 50/50 calls that could've made the result quite different. Reporter stirring up trouble?

Not really sure what the deal is with the report, will have to wait and see.
Personally i don't think he will leave by his own accord mid-season, especially not after a close loss which appeared to be winnable down to the final seconds.
But then again, some of Phil's decisions this year have been slightly strange so nothing would surprise me...

There has been improvement in playing and coaching lately, he's worked a bit harder...
I'll watch it now that australia just won the test.
I must say ch.9 news got hodge right well before anybody, must've got something from phil on that.

Boy, he was frustrated with that loss. seems tired of losing, 'time for a change'
( would he work ch9 or fox maybe )

Was just Smyth at the press conference saying that sometimes people feel like they need a change and that if the club wants to take a different direction next season, he won't stand in the way. Not really a big deal in the end.

He made a careful remark about a bad call from the refs that he thought had a big impact on the game.

Sports Tonight (I think it was) showed Ballinger's comments at the press conference where he said he thought they played well enough to have won it.

Ill help him pack his bags if he likes :P Nah It will be good to have a new direction next year.

Yes, unfortunately the time for change was about 2-3 yrs ago.... Great champion for the club, will be great to see the great man move onto something else....

He still does not seem to want to take any responsibility for the performance of the team in recent times. That is what I find disappointing.
He is very much right though hinting that perhaps there needs to be a change of direction, starting with the coach unfortunately.

I actually felt sorry for him watching that interview. He looked so drained and gutted.

Definitely time for him to go though, but that seemed to be the general consensus from tip off of the first game this season.

Agreed Kobe, I thought he looked tired and drained and perhaps he has decided to make the move. I am not a fan but think he deserves to be shown some respect on here in his last weeks.

yeah he did look tired in the interview. I think the actual story was really blown up but i think the the end of season change was inevitable and its a natural progression. He has had a lot of years at the club, he has his good point and his bad, its just time for some new thinking and approach.

Yes the time is right, and he certainly did look very drained and tired in the interview. But the same guy has been a master of using the media.
We have had our great times under Smyth but all good things must come to an end sometime.

Yes it was along the lines of 'in the past we would've one that game '
looked like hodge got knocked to the ground, rather than turned it over.
and their cheerleaders were almost in phils face at timeouts.
At the time of the press conference he'd had enough.

Had enough but couldn't afford another fine! Perhaps he is just letting other clubs know he is available.... starting the 'job search' a little early. I agree though, with not to long left in this season, if they make the playoffs or not, I just hope the negative banter which gets no one anywhere is kept to a minimum!

As a fan, as much as ive complained with this coach in recent years, I cant be unhappy with 3 beautiful championships! Those memories are with me forever (insert violin music haha)!

which was the bad call he referred to?

ch9 picked up that brown had travelled and not called.
he said there was one just before that, but didnt want to get fined.

cheers

Maybe hes setting a good example by not getting fined. ;)

I'm curious to know what happens when the NBL watch tapes of that game and find there were indeed some inaccurate calls. In a game so close, it made the difference. What do they say, "sorry boys, that's just the luck of the draw". "You were good enough to win but bad luck that the refs went against you." Good luck next time.

As for Smyth and all the comments about time for him to go, I am more interested in information about what replacement the club would bring in as the Head Coach rather than just talk about Smyth going. His leaving is no where near as important as his replacement and yet there is little talk about that.

I wouldnt mind a Stacker Ninnis combo.

As for inaccurate calls, have a look over the course of a whole game and you will find them going both ways.
Great teams rise above it and will still find ways to win.

Stacker has been seen quite a lot around Vodafone arena lately. Hmmmmmmmmm.

Maher: Player/Coach.

Boti:

And, contrary to a television news report last night, Adelaide coach Phil Smyth is positive his team is still in the play-off hunt, three wins behind eighth-placed Townsville (12-11) but with three games still in hand at 9-11.

He won't be "falling on his sword" any time soon, though if he had one, at least one of Perth's NBL refs would be headless.

"I can't give an honest opinion about the officiating without risking a fine," he said last night.

If there was no fine for a whinge against the refs, then I can assure you that Smyths whinge would not have been a minor one. Ballinger made the comment that he thought the 36ers had played well enough to win. To me that comment suggested that the 36ers actually played a bit better. Might be looked at as bias considering he is a major player for the 36ers. As for DJ's comments about inaccurate calls throughout the course of the game, I agree you have to look at the whole game but still wonder how a game so close would have panned out with no inaccurate calls.

IMO still the most important question if Phil is to "fall on his sword" is...

Who is his replacement, is there anyone out there who is a better option?

Realistic names please, its no good talking bout contracted coaches or dreams, lets see who is good enough?

With the exception of Marty Clarke, Schueller is easily the best coach in Australia at the moment who doesn't currently have an NBL gig. Give the job to him.

If Smyth is the coach players want to play for(??) then Stacker is the coach no player wants to play for.

Don't you find it curious why Stacker couldn't get a job this year... especially when there were numerous opportunities and was over looked for rookie coaches in Beveridge, Cooks, a player-coach in Heal and even Lemanis who assisted under Stacker got the job in N.Z over him.

Say no to Stacker

Chesty, I'd say Beveridge and Cooks came a fair bit cheaper than Stacker would. Given West Sydney and Wooloongong's financial situation, that would have been a major issue.

If you think that Schueller is the second best coach in Australia without a NBL job then you have rocks in your head and you need to get out more.

Frank Arsego would be my choice, but it wouldn't upset me to see Stacker. Stacker wouldn't come cheap.

I think you'd find it hard to nudge Marty Clarke away from the AIS

The same few coaches' names are continually being thrown around because people don't know of any others. If a suitable replacement was to come in for Smyth, then a completely new coach from overseas would need to looked at. A little bit like the difference that Gus Hiddink made for the Socceroos in the last world cup. Bring in a basketball coach of that calibre and who can achieve the absolute best out of his players.

I like your idea EC. Let's bring in coach with a good resume and a history of development from overseas without the issues that would be associate with a retread Australian coach. The coach would come in with a clean slate without prior issues or skeletons which arose from their previous experience in the NBL. Make a completely new start.

I remember when the Giants gave Brett Brown the job and he turned out to be a pretty damn good coach.

I think that Arsego is better as an assistant (possibly he would even admit that). An outsider would be good but only if he commands the respect that Hiddink did. Any suggestions as to who - Phil Jackson, Mike K? Hiddink came at a fair price - I'm not sure we can afford anyone who is established. If we did go for an outsider they would probably be an unknown trying to prove themselves and go on to bigger things.

TR, Brett Brown didn't come to the NBL direct from the U.S.

Brett Brown was in Australia for 8 years before he got an NBL gig.

He coached SEABL & VBA teams and was Lindsay's assistant in the 80's.

we certainly dont need another yank as a coach in this league, time to promote and give aussie coaches a chance. There are too many yanks coaching as it is!

i do agree NO TO STACKER, he is best to coach junior mens teams! He wouldnt be good for adelaide. The squads he had in townsville were some of the best lists in the country and he never delivered.

BY the way....what did Brett Brown do other than lead a stacked roster to a title?

Maley
Leader
Peirce
Reidy
Johnson
Rees
Sengstock
and a wiley little PG called Daryl something

Guys, that was a chapionhship team no matter who was coaching.

The Giants imploded under Brett Brown shortly after that season. They added Chris Jent and still couldn't get there in 95 and by 96 they were 15-11 and going nowhere.

When the Magic and Giants merged to be the Titans, it was the former GIANTS owners who made it a condition that Goorjian was coach. They didn't want Brown back.

Scott Ninnis is the man for the job with Steve Breheny or Frank Arsego willing to come on board as a senior advisor or as his mentor type position.

Ian Stacker? WTF Townsville sacked him in hope to make a positive change. They are no better than we are now so that makes no sense to make a change for the better.

Marty Clarke would have been an ideal choice to take over 3 year ago when Holmes, Forman and Matt Illman were rookies and then Newley, Ingles, Hill, Seebohm and Schenscher were just about them come household name but that never happened.

Scott Ninnis is the ideal man to take over.

Scotty Ninnis is a head coach in waiting.

Ninnis.....pfffttt!!!!!

Would Breheny stay if Phil left????

Whilst no real insight into a replacement coach, I wouldnt be against Stacker I believe we need a opposite style coach to Phil to have q uick impact and to get some passion back in team.
Scotty might be ok as assistant but not as head coach in my belief.
Did anybody catch another pearler of excuse from phil on N B L site
( the big problem has been recruiting players when we were losing money )
Over last few years have we ever been under the salary cap, if we have it has been minor.
Must still be good coaches in U S A willing to come out. Joey Wright a example I know he has had team . but people were singing his praises from day 1

FWIW, I think we were under the cap last year.

But otherwise, it shouldn't be a voiced excuse IMO. Haven't heard Cook or Beveridge comment on it, other than Beveridge acknowledging that they were rebuilding and hadn't really expected to make the play-offs this season.

drB, why don't we need another yank coach in this league? The ones we already have are the most successful. Isn't success what we are after for the 36ers? If it comes in the form of an American Coach, then it should just be a formality.

It isn't really "falling on his sword" if he leaves at the end of the season is it? He's out of contract anyway.