Fev behaviour no concern: Voss
Brisbane Lions coach Michael Voss is excited about the prospect of having former Blue Brendan Fevola in his team
While Carlton was desperate to off-load their troubled spearhead after his disgraceful performance at the Brownlow Medal night, Voss was welcoming him with open arms.
The triple premiership captain who piloted the Lions to a finals appearance in his first season as coach in 2009, said Fevola would not only add to his team on the field, but off it as well.
Speaking at a joint press conference at Gold Coast theme park Wet 'n' Wild just hours after Friday’s trade deal, Voss stood by his new full-forward and bluntly denied having any reservations about Fevola’s behaviour.
“No, not at all, he wouldn’t be standing beside me if I was concerned at all,” he said.
“I’ve been aware like most people what happened on Brownlow night. I think for us it’s about being able to provide the environment and support he needs. I think we have a very healthy football culture at our club that’s going to help Brendan maximise his football capabilities.
“I think we have a good group on the rise that he can add value to, not just on the field but also off the field. That’s our expectation.”
Voss could barely contain his excitement at luring Fevola to the Lions.
He joined Brent Staker, Amon Buchanan, Andrew Raines and Xavier Clarke as trade week deals he had stitched up in the past five days.
And the thought of Fevola teaming with Jonathan Brown and Daniel Bradshaw has Voss licking his lips.
He said after the Lions had been eliminated in the second week of the finals, he carefully watched Geelong and St Kilda battle out the grand final and identified just what his team was lacking.
“It’s going to create some headaches for the opposition and certainly increase our scoring potency,” he said of Fevola.
“I thought we defended very, very well, I thought we scrambled very well and I think we needed to increase our options forward.
“We’ve been able to get our man. I looked at the grand final and I saw two very, very good football teams and as a coach in the stands you say: ‘Can we get there with the team we’ve got, can we compete against these guys tomorrow if we have to?’.
“I have to be honest and say at that particular time I didn’t think we could. I think we’ve got some really fantastic emerging players with a lot of work to do. It (trade week) was about trying to find the players that can help us get to that next level and I think we’ve accomplished that.”
With five new men coming at the expense of Bradd Dalziell, Lachlan Henderson and some draft picks, Voss now has the task of trying to meld a new team again.
He said it would take time to “establish relationships” but expected the new forward combination of Brown, Bradshaw and Fevola to work in synch, just as they did at the Hall of Fame Tribute match last season.
After having Daniel Bradshaw and Michael Rischitelli visit Carlton as trade bait on Thursday before the pair rejected the potential deal, Voss said there would be no problems with either come the new season.
“They’ll be all right. They’re good people. They understand obviously there’s a process we had to go through.”