By Elly McNerney
Coburg is pleased to announce that we have finalised our coaching line up for our Men’s side, that will compete in the new look VFL/East Coast 2nd tier league.
The 2020 season didn’t go the way anyone would have expected and there was a great sense of optimism amount what season 2020 could bring for the club, our coaches and football department. They are as excited as ever and committed to get back to work with our players, fellow staff members and volunteers to finish the job that was started in November 2019.
Senior Coach- Andrew Sturgess
Andrew Sturgess will enter his 2nd year at the helm, after taking the reins in late 2019. A former Coburg player, he played 21 games across 2 years in 2014 & 2015.
“I love being part of Coburg because of the people within it. Everyone at our club genuinely cares about each other as a person first and their position second. It really is like having a second family and is such an enjoyable and safe environment to be amongst.”
When asked what excited him the most about 2021, Sturgess said, “Given that we haven’t seen each other in such a long time, the thing I’m most excited about is reconnecting with everyone as a group. Beyond that, we have grown as a club in our unity and alignment in such a short time in an off field perspective, and I’m really looking forward to having the opportunity to reflect that by playing some games to show our members and fans the progress we had made as a playing group in preparation for the 2020 season that we unfortunately weren’t able to do.”
“2021 is such an exciting time for our club as a whole as we celebrate our 130th year of existence, a new facility not far away, the men’s team playing in an expanded competition, our inaugural women’s team being formed, a growing junior program and of course the chance to get our loyal and loving members back at the footy supporting the Lions! 2021 can’t come quick enough.”
Sturgess has plenty of coaching experience including being appointed as an assistant coach for Coburg in 2017, as well as being appointed division one Senior Coach at the Bundoora Football Club, in the Northern Football League.
Assistant Coaches
Backline Coach- Mark Hounslow
Mark joined Coburg in late 2019, and wanted to return for 2021 saying, “I love the family feel of the Coburg football club and while we are in a semi elite environment, it has that community football club feel which I think is important.”
When asked what excited him the most about 2021 Mark said,
“With the restructuring of the competition its exciting that we get to showcase our club to a wider audience. A real positive vibe was around the place for 2020 and looking forward to building on that again for 2021 in our 130th year. A new facility for players, staff and supporters is also exciting with some great work from people behind the scenes.”
Hounslow will be excited to work with our backline group in 2021 after making some great inroads with the group in the leadup to the now-cancelled 2020 season.
Midfield Coach- Adrian Pilgrim
Adrian joined the club in late 2019 after spending 2 seasons with the Western Jets in the NAB League and was asked about his connection to the club that’s been formed in a short amount of time, “We are a proud club with a rich history. I feel there is a strong sense of connection across the club and a shared passion to make Coburg great again!”
When asked what excited him the most about 2021, he said, “Watching the momentum and continue to build through belief, hard work and a player driven desire to challenge each other and lift the performance bar”
Pilgrim can’t wait to get back to work with the likes of Bunker, Ballard, Silvestro and Podhajski and others that have recently re-committed to the club for 2021.
Forward Line Coach – Michael Still
Michael joined the club in late 20219 following a playing career that tasted AFL experience as well as VFL, SANFL and local football in the Northern Football League with Eltham, who in 2021 he’ll still be playing for when there aren’t fixture clashes with Coburg games.
“Since joining the club in the preseason of 2019, I have loved building new relationships with players, staff, and volunteers and learning about and celebrating the rich history and success of the club.”
When asked what excited him the most about 2021, Michael said
“I am really looking forward to the challenges associated with the new look 2021 competition that include new opposition teams and Interstate travel.
Development coach- Daniel Fiteni
After joining the club as an assistant in the football department, Daniel will step into the role as development coach in 2021 and said, “I love the club because of the family culture that’s been driven at Coburg.”
When asked about what most excites him for 2021, Daniel said, “I’m looking forward to building on what we started in 2020, being my first year at the club I’m personally looking to grow not only as a coach but to learn from my peers on all aspects of the football club.”
Fiteni has plenty of knowledge of the game, after playing VFL for Williamstown Football Club, as well as playing senior football for Keilor Park in the early 2000’s.
High Performance Manager- Elliott Matthews
After starting at Coburg as an intern in the High-Performance team in 2018, and then more recently became a strength and conditioning coach at Coburg in 2019, Matthews will resume he’s role as the High-Performance manager after being appointed in late 2019.
Upon re-committing for 2021, Matthews said, “ Being part of Coburg FC is being part of a big family. Going to training and games is exciting because you’re doing what you love with some really good people who have become great friends. It is just a really enjoyable environment that I live being a part of. I have great support in my job from my high-performance team and Seb, Sturg and the other officials and coaches, and then there has been a massive push to support people from a personal level too. I believe that the people at Coburg genuinely care about me as an individual and that’s really valuable to me.”
When asked about what excites him the most about 2021, Elliot said “2021 will be exciting for a number of reasons. We made tremendous strides in our last pre-season and didn’t get to show that off, so I think there’s a bit of unfinished business to take care of in 2021. We’re also moving into new facilities at Piranha Park which complements the development we’ve made on the field, and that will enable us to take the High Performance and Football programs to another level. The new women’s team is a great thing for the club and community, and the men’s admission into the new east coast competition puts our talented and proud club on a bigger stage.
Matthews has lots of experience, including spending time at the Port Melbourne Football club in 2016 as a Strength and conditioning coach. As well as working as a personal trainer at Pro Sport Health and the Yarra Council. Matthews also has coaching experience after coaching Hockey at Xavier College in Kew.
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