By ADEM SARICAOGLU
MELTON South coach Mathew Sutton is not yet sure if he’ll play on in 2014.
The 36-year-old admits he has not listened to his aging body in recent years and will make a decision on his playing future after he books himself in for surgery on his troublesome left knee.
“It’s been 29 years I’ve played footy for and I probably haven’t listened to the doctors or surgeons and this time I will,” Sutton told Star.
“If they say to me ‘you’re mad to keep going’ or anything like that then I will pull the pin but I definitely need some surgery on my left knee.
“I need an x-ray on my lower leg because I could have a small fracture in my lower leg that I may have copped three weeks ago, so I’ll go get that fixed and I’ve actually been playing with a broken knuckle for most of the year.
“So I’ll give that a chance to repair as well, and once I’ve done that I’ll have a look where we recruit as well, see what we pick up and if everything looks good I’ll pull the boots back on.”
Sutton played 15 games and kicked 68 goals for the Panthers this season and still believes he does have a role to play on the field – but admits he would prefer to spend more time on the sidelines as his young team develops into the future.
“If you’re always contributing then you feel like you’re a part of it I suppose, and I feel like I’m still contributing in the way I want to,” Sutton said.
“I kicked nearly 70 goals this year, which is as good as any other year I’ve had.
“But the other thing on the flip side is I always wanted to finish on a high, so you’ve got to tend to think I’ve got the opportunity to finish on a high now, too, and walk away.”
South’s 2013 campaign ended in disappointing fashion last week, going down by 57 points against Darley at home.
The Panthers finished eighth on the Ballarat Football League ladder with just five wins for the year and had to battle with a series of key injuries and the mid-season controversy that surrounded the departure of playing assistant coach Leigh Burke.
However Sutton believes the club is now in a healthy state off the field – and is keen to ensure the Panthers can reciprocate on the field in 2014.
“We’ve had a dozen kids out of the under-18s that have come in and played senior footy at some stage,” Sutton said.
“We’re going to have a lot of these kids that will step up and play regular senior footy next year so we’ve just got to get the right mix around them.”
Sutton revealed this summer’s recruiting drive will focus on landing multiple key forwards, key defenders and midfielders.
