Light on the horizon: Voss
The day after being inducted into the Hall of Fame, Michael Voss tells Leigh Matthews it's time to look over the horizon
ON THE morning after the night before, when he was inducted into the Australian Football Hall of Fame, Brisbane Lions coach Michael Voss was looking forward.
He said the second half of the year was an opportunity for his young Lions' team to finish strongly and establish some momentum to take into next year's pre-season.
"Momentum has a funny way of being able to carry on," said Voss.
In an interview reminiscing about his playing career with his former coach, Leigh Matthews, on afl.com.au's Talking Footy program, Voss reflected on the momentum shift that took place in 2001 when the Lions entered round 10 with four wins and five losses ready to take on the defending premiers Essendon.
Of course it's folklore now that the Lions beat Essendon by 28 points to start a winning streak that stretched to 20 and an era of dominance that yielded three premierships.
Voss recalled Matthews' post-match encouragement after the Lions lost to Adelaide the week before that winning sequence began and the sudden realisation that came over the group after defeating Essendon. "Something there just flicked a switch," he said.
In his third year of coaching and with his team sitting 15th with just two wins - and after a period of enormous upheaval at the club - Voss said the club must maintain the competitive approach it had shown in every game before last week's disappointing performance at the hands of the Sydney Swans.
"We have been in most games that we have played so that has been enormously encouraging, to continue that message and make sure that we finish off strongly," said Voss.
At some stage, the momentum will shift to winning games - as happened against North Melbourne and Adelaide - rather than just being competitive.
Voss told Matthews the Lions have established a competitive base and the time is right to set some targets beyond the rebuild that has been underway for the past six months or so.
"As a club right now we need to be able to lift our eyes just a little bit over the horizon and have a little bit more of a look at where we are going and what we want to achieve. That is sort of where we are a little bit as a football club right now," said Voss.
