Mataulino was very good, when fit. Cleary signed smart. Even Packer was a smart signing. The issue was CLEARY LEAVING.
Mataulino's knee was the only thing that stopped him & he medically retired instead of holding on. Packer was ALWAYS Cleary's guy, and once Ivan left, Packer lost his way. Maguire never really clicked with him obviously & the rest is history.
Cleary's signings were not bad. Josh Reynolds, when he was on the field, was very good. What made Reynolds a bad signing? Re-signing Benji. It had to be one or the other, or let Brooks go.
Cleary had a plan. He just bailed once a better one became available.
Taylor wasn't popular, but he had zero funds & a poor squad & a core group of players with a manager that notoriously causes issues. He wasn't exciting, but he can develop & spot talent. He's also responsible for Alex Twal being a Tiger- and got some of the best out of him too.