What are you up to these days?
I’m the Academy Coach for AFL Tasmania. Basically, I go out and find the talented kids around Tasmania, set up all their training, train them up and hopefully get them drafted.
I’ve actually dealt with a lot of kids who are now at the Lions. You’ve got a few of them up there at the minute.
You’re obviously doing a great job because there are plenty of talented young players currently in the AFL system who were originally drafted from Tasmania.
We do our best, but our jobs are going to get much harder down here now that there’s been a greater push into the northern states - particularly in NSW and Queensland.
I think Queensland football is flying with the amount of junior football clubs starting up. In years to come, it’s going to make our job harder because there will be more players in the market.
We’re producing enough talent down here at the moment and we believe the things we’ve got in place are working. But we’re always open to try and find ways to do things better.
How long has it been since you’ve been out of the game as a player?
I officially stopped playing at the end of 1998. My last season was with the Northern Bombers down here in Tasmania. We went through undefeated in the state-wide league and I thought that was good enough, I’ll hang the boots up now.
I finished in the AFL in 1997 (with North Melbourne), came back Launceston to join the Northern Bombers and at the end of that year, I moved to Brisbane as one of the Lions’ Assistant Coaches to Leigh Matthews.
What are your fondest memories from your playing days with Fitzroy?
I had a lot of great memories. There was a real closeness between the players because we were such a battling club.
There were times when we would rock up to training and the facilities and the changerooms were locked. We battled to get paid on time, so we had to stick together pretty close. I think that’s my fondest memory.
I still have friends today that I keep in contact with from that era. I still talk to Lynchy a little bit.
The club went through a hell of a lot during my time there, but there were still a lot of good footballers at Fitzroy. We didn’t have as much as the other clubs in Melbourne and we had to work very hard for what we got. I guess it was a good learning curve
Do your kids share your interest in footy?
They’re just starting to figure it out. One’s four and one’s seven. They’re just starting to figure it all out and who their favourite players are.
But the only problem is that they’re all over Geelong at the moment, obviously with their success over the last couple of years. I’m finding it very hard to change them to the Lions at the minute.
What’s the biggest change you’ve noticed in modern football compared to your days as a player?
You certainly have to communicate a lot differently now.
You have to be able to communicate in three or four different ways - verbally, with the vision, on-ground practice, whiteboard sessions. You really have to communicate and be careful with the way you put things across at times.
The Brisbane Lions are currently in the process of updating their database of past players and coaches. If you played a senior match with Fitzroy, the Bears or the Brisbane Lions (or know someone that has) and haven’t remained in contact with the Club, please email your phone and address details to melbourne@lions.com.au so that we can keep you in touch with any future events with past players.
