Matthews a big fan of Scott’s challenging words

AFL great Leigh Matthews loves that even after losing to Richmond, Geelong coach Chris Scott was challenging the reigning premier in public.

It has echoes of Matthews’s famous quote in 2001, when he was coaching Brisbane Lions and evoked the line before their defining game against Essendon from the movie Predator: “If it bleeds, we can kill it.”

The Lions defeated the Bombers, the defending premiers who had won eight of their first nine games that year.

Scott was a key member of that 2001 Lions’ flag-winning team and the Matthews protege is showing he has learned his old master’s lessons well.

After losing to the Tigers by three points in Round 20 — and before the Cats’ finals berth was confirmed — Scott said Richmond would still need a lot to go right to win a second-straight flag.

“That’s exactly what an opposition coach should be saying — that they have to play well to win . . . mostly for your players,” Matthews told the Four Hoarseman podcast.

“The coaches I’ve coached, I say, ‘in your press conferences, you’re mainly speaking to your own players’.

“It has to be completely in line with everything with the things you’re saying to your players behind the scenes.”

Geelong will play Melbourne on September 7 in an elimination final at the MCG.

“I have an enormous amount of respect for Chris and Brad (Scott),” Matthews said.

He said Chris’s challenging of Richmond was typical of how he conducted himself in public.

“I often say about Chris, when I hear coaches talk in their press conferences, most of the time you just think it’s the company line,” Matthews said.

“But I’ve never heard Chris say a wrong word — he did it once and I’m just trying to think where I thought, ‘I wish you hadn’t said that Chris’.

“He handles the public part of the coaching role brilliantly.”