After the long off season it is SAUNFC’s pleasure to announce the 2016 coaching appointments. While some familiar faces have returned we also welcome some new coaches on board for the 2016 season.
Daniel Gilmore will once again lead the NEAFL squad into battle in 2016. Daniel, who had his best ever year as senior coach last year took the students into their first ever finals series which included the sides first ever Finals victory. Under his leadership the squad played fantastic football before falling one game short of the Grand Final. He will be hoping for more of the same this year as the students look to push themselves into their first ever NEAFL Grand Final. The club is also pleased to announce that Lewis Roberts-Thomson has again signed on as Senior Assistant Coach. It’s fantastic to have him back again for the 2016 season.
In a huge step for our Premier Division side senior coach Ben Merson has again signed on for the 2016 season. This will be Ben’s second year at the club as he looks to improve on his sides Elimination Final loss in the 2015 season. Injuries hampered the Prems 2015 season however, Ben achieved above and beyond to ensure that his side played finals. We look forward to Ben’s second year at the helm and wish him luck on his campaign.
The U19 ‘Colts’ are again in good hands with senior coach Paul Markou taking the reins for the 2016 season. This is Pauls third season in charge of the Colts as he looks to build a strong culture and high playing standards for this squad. The Colts impressed last year under his leadership and we are sure that 2016 will see the rewards of all his hard work and dedication to this program.
The ‘Blues’ had a very successful 2015 campaign under coach Adam Clark who took them to three Premierships in a row. The back-to back- to back Premiers took out the Division 2 competition in 2013 and 2014 before being promoted and winning the Division 1 competition in 2015. Unfortunately Adam Clark will not be coaching this year in order to spend extra time with his young family. With this comes the exciting news that 2015 Division 3 Premiership coach Sam Power will be stepping up into this role for the 2016 season. Sam is a well-known and respected club figure and we are sure 2016 will be a successful year for our Division 1 boys.
The Division 3 ‘Reds’ had a brilliant season which resulted in the side taking out the Division 3 Premiership in 2015. Lead by Sam Power the squad pushed hard all year before beating close rivals and minor premiers UTS in an impressive Grand Final display. This year the ‘Reds’ will be embarking on a great challenge as they have been promoted into the Division 2 competition. With Sam Power moving up to coach the blues we are very pleased to announce that Trent Millstead will take on the Senior Coaching role assisted by Nathan Danckert and Jim Beard. All are well liked and respected members of SUANFC and we are sure that they will do a fantastic job with this newly promoted outfit.
The Division 4 ‘Golds’ welcome back a familiar coaching face to the club in the form of Gus Stephenson. After focusing on playing for the last few years Gus has come back to coach the Golds for the 2016 season. With his vast footy knowledge and ability to get the best out of his players 2016 could be the Golds year. We wish him good luck with his 2016 campaign!
The Division 5 ‘Platinums’ would like to welcome clubman Brent Pollock to the head coaching role. Brent joined SUANFC in 2006 and since then has played over 100 games for the club. He won his first premiership with the Reds in 2009, a feat repeated last year in a successful 2015 Reds campaign. Brent is new to coaching and is looking forward to being part of the Plats in 2016.
The Division 4 ‘Golds’ and the Division 5 ‘Plats’ would like to thank the departing Isaac Martin and James Davey. These two fine men led their respective teams brilliantly in 2015 and SUANFC would like to thank them for their fantastic efforts. While we have confirmed the Golds Senior coach for 2016 we are yet to confirm a Division 5 coach. Keep an eye out over the coming weeks for an announcement on this.
