By Nicholas Galea
Hard running wingman Tom Silvestro has re-signed with the Coburg Football Club for the 2022 VFL season after penning a one-year extension.
A veteran of 78 VFL games, Silvestro played every match in his first season for Coburg and proved to be quite the recruit for the club after an impressive year which saw him average 18.3 disposals, 3.9 tackles and 6.1 handball receives (both fourth at the club) per game while also kicking four goals.
Silvestro’s influence wasn’t just limited to on the field but off it as well as he added leadership, professionalism, and experience to a youthful and vibrant playing list in 2021.
Senior Men’s Coach Andrew Sturgess said the thought process of recruiting Silvestro in late 2019 to the club was to help drive the standards to the playing group and he certainly delivered on those expectations in 2021.
“I think by his own admission, Tom would probably say that he has got some growth left in his game but from our perspective I think he certainly exceeded what we were asking of him within his role and I think that’s all we can ask for in any player is to play your role,” Sturgess said.
“Tom is quiet and unassuming at times, but the way that he actually goes about it in his actions and the way that he carries himself is probably more of the way that he leads.”
“There’s one thing to hear about that this guy’s a good trainer, and this guy’s a good runner but there’s another thing to see it in the flesh and when you do see it, you’re absolutely blown away.”
“What he has actually done for everybody else is give a benchmark of what the standard should look like… you know what you are going to get from Tom every week and I think what he has done is just raise the standards and expectations of those around him to make it a better club.”
A highly respected member of the playing group, Silvestro finished fifth in the Jim Sullivan Medal; just eight votes behind the eventual winner in Luke Bunker, while he was also the recipient of the Trevor Price Spirit Award. Sturgess credited Silvestro’s character and commitment to the club and his teammates throughout the course of the season as the reason for this recognition.
“Playing on the wing in our system at times this year was probably challenging for Tom and it can be frustrating where you’re playing a role that is sometimes dependant on the ball actually being moved in that direction for you to be involved in that play,” Sturgess said.
“Not at one stage or moment in any game did Tom waver from what his role and obligation to the team and our structure were and I think that’s why he finished so highly in our best and fairest.”
“It’s not on his pure numbers and there were some games this year where Tom probably didn’t reach the numbers from a possession count that maybe your used to seeing from guys that play predominantly in the midfield or on the wings.”
“He is someone that within the club and within particularly the coach’s department, and I can 100% vouch for this, that of his teammates, that he is hugely respected for the sacrifice that he makes every week to make the team better and that’s why he also won the Team Spirit Award.”
Sturgess is also confident that the shape of the list was tracking quite well for next season and stated that Silvestro was an important piece of the puzzle to returning Coburg back to finals football.
“We think we’re building nicely and Tom’s going to be an important figure in what we do in 2022 and beyond,” Sturgess said.
Coburg fans can get excited as they can expect more news on further player re-signings for season 2022 across our Men’s and Women’s teams to be announced in the coming weeks by following the Coburg Football Club’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.
