Werribee will be back on the track in just two weeks for pre-season training. 85805_23 Picture: MATHEW LYNN
By LIAM TWOMEY
WERRIBEE is set to have an increased connection to the Western Jets as of next season with Scott Korczynski taking over as the development and academy coach at the Tigers.
Korczynski is well known in football circles in the West having spent the last seven years with the Jets in various coaching roles.
He is also a physical education teacher at Lakeview Secondary College in Caroline Springs and has headed up its AFL Academy for the last six years.
In other coaching changes, former development and academy coach Chris Gilham will be a line coach for the Tigers’ senior side.
Tigers CEO Mark Penaluna said the club was hoping to see more rewards for the junior players it helps to develop in the coming seasons.
The Tigers have approached AFL Victoria to discuss the issue of players from western suburbs development side (the Jets) being linked predominantly to the Williamstown Football Club.
“A boy from Hoppers Crossing or Werribee or Point Cook that plays in the city of Wyndham that we service as best we can through development programs is linked to Williamstown.
“Anything we can do to try and facilitate and support the development of players from the West that ultimately come to us, if not the AFL, then that’s what we aim to do.
“We would like wherever we can to have boys from the city of Wyndham playing football for our club. We would like to think that in time you are going to see much more of that happen.”
With Werribee set to begin pre-season training in just two weeks, Penaluna said the club would be looking to add a key forward to its group for 2013.
“I think if you look back on last season a lot of the Kangaroos guys were the ones who kicked the majority of goals for us,” he said.
“I think when the AFL delistings are finalised at the end of October we will have a much clearer picture of what we need to be looking for.
“In the meantime we are working towards having our own players sign on for next year and over the next two weeks we will have a clearer idea about which of the guys are going to be staying on from 2012.”
