The Gold Coast Suns have completed the restructuring of the club’s coaching department, appointing Rhyce Shaw as their new head of development.
The former Collingwood father-son cum Sydney premiership defender has a wealth of player development experience from his time at the Swans post-retirement in 2015.
After the 2018 season, Shaw moved to North Melbourne as an assistant coach. He became caretaker coach after Brad Scott’s resignation after Round 10 and famously led the club to seven wins out of the remaining 12 games.
North Melbourne’s decision to appoint their interim coach started a trend in 2019 which saw David Teague and Brett Rutten at Carlton and St Kilda respectively also land full-time jobs after serving as interim coaches, but it didn’t work out for Shaw or North Melbourne.
In fact, given he was announced as full-time coach after only five games, even though he led the side to four wins in that time, the decision to sign him to a three-year deal seemed premature.
The tumultuous year in 2020, time in the hub and injuries to key players railroaded the Kangaroos’ season and Shaw took an indefinite leave after the final game to deal with the traumatic season with his family back in Melbourne.
The timing of Shaw’s promotion to head coach and the club’s transition to new CEO, Ben Amarfio, always seemed to be like a time bomb given that the club’s on- and off-field performance would be judged with these two leaders in sharp focus.
Rhyce Shaw (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images)
Nevertheless, Shaw’s parting with North Melbourne and reunion with longtime Sydney colleague, Stuart Dew, is a good news story. Mental health is gaining incremental understanding in the media, however, the comprehension of how mental illness can affect a person remains limited and narrow in scope.
Rhyce Shaw’s illness has not “gotten better suddenly”, he’s just managed it and acknowledged that his previous working environment was toxic for him.
A move away from the Melbourne bubble into the warm weather and sunshine of the Gold Coast with a mandate to develop the AFL’s youngest list is just the rehabilitation Shaw needs to again show his best traits and pass on the experience of his failures as well as successes.
The social media reaction to Shaw’s appointment has been mixed, but the majority of Suns fans are welcoming of the appointment and happy to see such a popular figure given another chance in the difficult circumstances.
There will always be the naysayers and trolls who mistake mental illness for a weakness, but Rhyce Shaw’s strength showed when he had been so resilient for so long and walked away when he couldn’t keep up the facade any longer.
Well done to Gold Coast for displaying empathy along with shrewd judgement in making such a bold and daring selection for this crucial role at the club.
Welcome to the Suns family, Rhyce Shaw.
Charlie Keegan
Roar Guru
I’m glad Shaw has managed to find a role in footy he’s too good to not have a role.
Adam White
Guest
So happy about this. As a kiwi Freo fan one thing that has surprised me is the Melbourne media. The analysis, criticism, daily grind on the coaches and the players is way more intense than even the all blacks here. It's week in and week out, all through the season. This year it seemed worse than ever, and the continued attacks on Collingwood made me feel for their supporters, somthing I've never done before. So when I heard Rhyce was standing down in relation to stress and the work environment I was not surprised. Hope Rhyce does well at his new job, and I hope his family enjoy Queensland.
Naughty's Headband
Roar Rookie
Good for him.
Christo the Daddyo
Roar Rookie
Maybe...
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
The game seems to be changing with regards to mental health and well being. I’m very proud of my club for not falling prey to the stigma and getting the bloke for their young list. Whispers going around - totally unsubstantiated - that Heater Shaw could get a lifeline in the SSP. After what he’s done for GWS, it could be a very enticing arrangement, although he’s not likely to be thrilled about playing in the Nevilles.
Boo
Guest
Maybe we all need to adjust our perception of depression rather than being semi - permanent a change of stimulus in this case environment can work wonders .Good luck to him .
Chris M
Guest
Rhyce Shaw seemed to get excellent results when he was in charge of the Swans' NEAFL side. I can't pretend to be an expert here. From my search of the internet, I confirmed my own vague recollection that the Swans' team that he had coached won the NEAFL minor premiership and had reached the grand final in consecutive years. I believe that Rhyce decided to return to Melbourne due to his strong family connections there. He probably thought that would give him an even better ongoing environment in which to thrive both professionally and personally. In hindsight, in deciding to work in the AFL industry in the city where high profile appointments come under the most intense scrutiny and criticism, he also unexpectedly found he was forced to live under the constraints caused by Covid-19. The circumstances that arose affected each person differently and we all have our own different limitations within a variety of stressful situations. The hubs affected personal and family relationships and it affected some players' performances on the field and behaviour off the field. In Shaw's case, his mental wellbeing suffered. In his short time away, he seems to have readjusted his expectations as to how he can do something that he loves in an environment that is supportive to his current personal needs while making the best contribution to the industry that he can in using the skills that he has. As Rhyce was named NEAFL Coach of the Year in his first season in that role, he will enjoy a lower key role in a less fanatical AFL environment with his wife and children by his side. Gold Coast is likely to benefit from his appointment.
Thom Roker
Roar Guru
“Toxic for him” being the operative phrase. It doesn’t imply it was so for others. The role obviously pushed him into a very distressed mental state. It was toxic for him to remain.
Christo the Daddyo
Roar Rookie
“ acknowledged that his previous working environment was toxic for him” Hmmm....