By Brooke Varney
The Coburg Football Club is delighted to announce the appointment of Leigh Adams as Senior Coach for the 2018 Victorian Football League season.
Adams joins Coburg after coaching South Croydon to a premiership flag in the Eastern Football League (Division 1) this year, prior to that having medically retired from the AFL in 2015.
Hoping to impact the club both on-field and off-field positively, Adams is excited for next season, and already has an idea of what he would like to achieve during his two-year agreement.
“I’m looking forward to working with young guys who are looking to develop into the best footballers they can be, and assisting them along the way,” he said.
“(I also hope to) bring on-field success to Coburg FC through a really predictable game plan, which will allow all players and supporters to identify with.”
“Off-field, I hope to bring a real community feel back to the place, and make it somewhere enjoyable where family and friends feel comfortable in the environment,” he continued.
Playing 104 games and kicking 72 goals for North Melbourne in the AFL between 2007 and 2015, Adams has “loved the transition” from player to coach.
“I still have a real passion for football, and now I get my competitiveness in the form of coaching.”
An AFL Level 3 accredited coach and part of the AFL’s Next Coach mentoring program which sees him learn under the guidance of other long-time AFL coaching professionals, Adams cannot wait to get started on his new journey.
“The challenge of this job attracted me, as we need to be realistic and realise we have a lot of hard work ahead of us,” he said.
“But, if we can all (stick together) as a club, it will be worth it in the long run.”
On behalf of the club and board, Coburg GM Seb Spagnuolo welcomes Adams to the club, and is assured he is the right fit for Coburg.
“Leigh is a very honest and hard-working young man, that as recently as 2015 was involved at the AFL level as a player,” Spagnuolo said.
“He’s 29 years old, and the club should feel really confident that we’re in safe and very capable hands; he joins us fresh from his against-the-odds premiership with South Croydon.”
“What appealed to us was his real thirst for the challenge of being Coburg’s senior coach. Leigh invests in people from players, members, staff and sponsors, and is someone that will do the ground work that should build a culture of success,” he continued.
“I’m extremely excited by the opportunity to work with Leigh and he can not wait to get started with our playing group.”
The Coburg Football Club extends a warm welcome not only to “Patch”, but also to his wife Cassie and daughter Audrey.
Ensure you are a part of the #WeAreCoburg family next season by signing up as a member now! Call us on (03) 9354 8228 to find out more.
