AFL coaches must find any bit of motivation they can to rally their troops, and in 2018, West Coast's Adam Simpson pulled out all the stops to achieve the ultimate.
Simpson bet against his men. Yes, you heard that right. But not in an illegal sense.
Towards the back end of the season, he felt the Eagles had begun to wane as they searched for the minor premiership.
In Round 18 against the Western Bulldogs, Simpson wanted to keep the motivation levels high.
"We had just belted the 3rd placed Pies at the MCG, and I was concerned the boys might've take the foot off a little bit against the 13th placed Doggies," he said on LinkedIn.
"So I walked in and told the team if they win, I'll put $500 towards the Footy Trip.
"We got up by 9 goals. Boys were stoked that I was buying a round postseason."
It wasn't the most conventional way to motivate his men, but it worked. However, the following week, the club faltered miserably against North Melbourne in Tasmania.
"I then offered double or nothing and we got belted by North the following week down in Tassie," he added.
"We went again the next week. A derby at home. 10 goal win. We played this out for the rest of the season and the pot grew."
On the final Saturday in September, the pot had grown to $10,000 as West Coast stormed past Collingwood and Melbourne in two home finals to secure a spot in the decider. They were facing the hot Pies who just knocked off the reigning premiers (Richmond) emphatically.
"Win today, and I'll put 10 grand to the footy trip. The boys loved it. And I believe it went to good use."
In one of the most enthralling grand finals this century, the Eagles, despite coughing up five unanswered goals to open the match, prevailed by five points to bring home the premiership cup.
"The boys didn't need extra motivation for a Grand Final. $500 didn't get them to beat the Doggies. But it was fun. It brought camaraderie. It became more of a focal point than I intended. But it gave us something else to focus on," Simpson said.
It provided banter. It broke tension. We're in the change rooms before the biggest game of our lives, and I'm talking about the fact that they might cost me $10k if they win.
"The unity these small things create within a team are a strong way to forming a strong culture. And to be fair, it was the best investment I've ever made."
