Scott West said he was yet to select a captain or leadership group, but Robert Castello is likely to be in the mix. 65990 Picture: EMILY LANE
By MICHAEL ESPOSITO
WERRIBEE coach Scott West said this season would be “nearly a fresh start” for the Tigers, but was aware of the expectations of the club after last year’s top four finish.
West said he was advised of the unique challenges of being a VFL coach – with its multiple focus on winning, developing players for another shot at the AFL, and looking after a revolving door of AFL-listed players – but his job will be particularly testing.
The 324-game Western Bulldogs champion will be the club’s third senior coach in three years, after first-year coach Paul Satterley transformed the fortunes of the club, and then was offered a job with Melbourne. The club is also beginning the process of selecting a new captain, after long-time servant and inspirational leader Dom Gleeson accepted a VFL/AFL coaching role at Geelong.
“It’s nearly a fresh start because we’ve got 25 new players on the list, we’ve got a new coach, but the core group of players that we’ve got are still here, which is really good for us, so I guess it’s a combination of continuing on the upward path as well,” West said.
Werribee has recruited a number of TAC Cup and suburban league players, as well as former premiership player Nathan Ablett, but time will tell if the club can cover the likes of Gleeson, hard-nosed midfielder Michael Rockefeller, and versatile tall Sean Tighe.
Perhaps most likely to fill Gleeson’s role of ball-winning midfielder is Michael Sodomaco, who was best-and fairest for Geelong Falcons in 2010. He missed most of last season with injury, but will be looking to break into the senior team this year.
“He’s had a slower pre-season before Christmas but is back into full training. He captained the Geelong Falcons.
“If he’s held I that regard he’s certainly got some talent, and he’s certainly showing it on the track,” West said.
Werribee has also recruited with a view to boosting its goal kick-
ing prowess. While goals weren’t scarce last season, the Tigers relied heavily on North Melbourne-listed players.
This season, Ablett is likely to be a focus up front, but keep an eye out for Jason Tom, who kicked 120 goals for Geelong Amateur in the Bellarine Football League last season.
Several players, such as Kyle Hartigan, are still devoted to keeping the AFL dream alive.
“I’ve been really impressed with a lot of the guys who I’ve spoken to. They’ve still got that burning ambition to get back to playing AFL footy. It doesn’t bother me one bit that they’re using this footy club as a vehicle to do that,” West said.
“The only thing I’ve said to them is make sure their ambition doesn’t get ahead of what the team’s goals are. They’re all very aware of that and really receptive of that, because they know if we have success as a team, that their individual talents will shine and they will get noticed.”
This comes back to the great challenge of a VFL coach – to form a united front with players who have vastly different individual goals.
But West has his own coaching ambitions, ultimately to be an AFL coach, and he too needs to reconcile the desire to impart his own coaching philosophies while sticking to the agenda set by North Melbourne.
Last season, Werribee adopted a game plan that reflected North Melbourne’s – West doesn’t see that changing much.
“Both clubs respect each other, and I think there has to be that continuity of what we do to a certain degree. It’s probably got to do more with the language of how we go about it rather than necessarily the same game style.
It’s only fair that the players who come down here from the Kangaroos aren’t having to learn two different languages.”
