Dees light new flame of spirit
ON a large wall inside the bowels of Melbourne’s football department is an inscription written in French. It reads, in big blue letters: “Esprit de corps.”
By definition, this fiercely guarded club motto means “a shared spirit of camaraderie, enthusiasm and devotion to a cause among the members of a group”.
But for Melbourne, this is no run-of-the-mill footy slogan.
This mantra has become the cultural backbone and driving force of the Demons’ resurgence under second-year coach Simon Goodwin.
Taken straight out of Norm and Len Smith’s legendary coaching playbook, esprit de corps represents the special bond shared by players, staff and families, as the Demons try to break the longest current premiership drought in the game.
“It is about mateship, and unity,” Goodwin said. “Doing it for each other, and for everyone at Melbourne.
“And it is based on a desire from the players to bring happiness and fulfilment to everyone around them; their teammates, families, the support staff and the fans.
“That is what means the most to the players. When they can walk off the field and share that joy. That is what drives them.”
Clearly, the emphasis for this group of Demons on the brink of the club’s first finals appearance in 12 years, is all about togetherness.
And, while the Demons will not have finals experience on their side, they will have this signature accord and team harmony.
Five-time premiership player Frank Adams saw it when he met Melbourne players on a visit to the club last month.
“The one thing we had under Norm was a super bond between the players, which was built on respect, loyalty, trust, understanding, and even love,” Adams said last week.
“It was a special ingredient, and I don’t think you can go all the way without it. And when I was invited in to address the players six weeks ago . . . I was really impressed by two things; the spirit of them and their humour.
“It was a really positive environment and I thought to myself right then, ‘everyone here is on the same page’.”
For Adams, it was a flashback to Melbourne’s golden era when sixtime premiership coach Norm Smith would arrange dinner dances for wives and girlfriends the night of games, and even pay for the women’s taxis to the club.
An engineer, he would also make prams for the first-born child of all his players, Adams said.
The focus on family was as important as the game.
“You would play a game on a Saturday and you might make a shocking error in a loss,” he said. “You would go to the dinner and the dance that night, and your wife would be there and ‘Smithy’ would come up, and you would be still waiting for the burst.
“But he would say to my wife, Noelle, not ‘how are the kids?’, but, ‘how is Tracey, how’s David, how’s Joanne?’
“You might have only played one game under Norm, but he would know your children’s names. That’s how close we all were.
“But on Tuesday, you would be at training, and that’s when you would cop the burst (laughing).”
Of the dinner dances, six-time premiership player Brian Dixon said: “The band would fire up and we would all end up doing the barn dance for two hours, which was great Sunday morning training.”
Three-time premiership player Hassa Mann said: “Everything was about the team, and team spirit, under Norm.”
But if that was Melbourne’s golden era, this new team spirit under Goodwin has been forged, in part, out of the ashes of the darkest chapter in the club’s history.
Only five years ago Melbourne slumped to one of the worst seasons on AFL record, winning two games. The average losing margin was 64 points.
Before senior coach Paul Roos started his three-year rescue mission in 2014, a senior player told him in their first meeting: “I just want to feel human again.”
Taking over from Roos, Goodwin wanted to create a new identity, or a hook, for the team.
On a trip to Stanford University in 2016, Goodwin was encouraged by Jerry Porras, who wrote a book about organisational culture called Built to Last, to discover the club’s true DNA.
He sought a higher purpose for the players, to help govern an exciting chapter for the once-besieged Dees.
Reading as much as he could about the club’s golden reign in the 1940s, ’50s and ’60s, Goodwin stumbled on esprit de corps.
It symbolised Smith’s “No. 1 coaching philosophy” throughout the most successful period in the club’s history, and six decades on, Melbourne’s current crop wholeheartedly embraced it as part of their inspirational new trademark.
The phrase is plastered on a white wall in the footy department meeting room, with an action photo of every current Melbourne player.
It draws on themes of fearlessness, togetherness and commitment and is a link back to “what the club was built on when it was great”.
Until now, this Melbourne mantra has been fiercely protected, much like Richmond’s sometimes-tearful HHH (hero, hardship or highlight) meetings that helped connect and unify the Tigers’ playing group last year.
Before that, the Western Bulldogs also found a special synergy under Luke Beveridge.
An emotional connectedness in football is about much more than having a beer together.
The old pub method is out. Family picnics and babysitting stints are in.
And, like the Tigers’ powerful storytelling, the Demons have also opened up about life stories, personal vulnerabilities and family bonds over the past few years.