General News
28 July, 2021
Tiger pair relinquish coaching role
SIMPSON is on the hunt for new leaders in season 2022, with co-coaches Tom Leishman and Nick Harding announcing they will not continue in the role beyond this season.
SIMPSON is on the hunt for new leaders in season 2022, with co-coaches Tom Leishman and Nick Harding announcing they will not continue in the role beyond this season.
The pair, who were appointed ahead of the abandoned 2020 campaign, have relinquished their coaching commitments citing the need for a fresh voice at the helm.
Leishman said the pair both planned to play on next season, while their own personal circumstances also factored into the decision.
“The first one was I’d been coaching there for five years now and was leaning towards it was probably time for a different voice to take the group to the next step,” he said.
“Another was Sophie has one (a child) due in September and I live in Colac now so that was a bit of a factor too.
“I encouraged Whopp (Harding) to stick at it and go on but he was under the same impression as me that a different voice would be a good thing.
“We’ve done a lot of coaching without playing (the last two years) which might have become a bit of a drag for a few, so we probably need someone who can rejuvenate a little bit of a spark in everyone.”
With a young core already established by Leishman and Harding, the Tigers are well primed to rise up the Colac and District football league ladder in future seasons despite the side likely missing finals this season.
Leishman said the coaching gig would be “a pretty appealing job for someone if they’re keen to take it on”, particularly if a new leader could bring some players with them.
“The fundamentals are already there and there’s a good consistent group of senior players with experience now,” he said.
“We’ve relished our time but we thought it was the best time for us to step away and the best thing for the club.
“There’s quite a few already committed (for season 2022) and they can see the potential in the group is still there.
“It’s pretty hard not playing finals and we know finals are hard to win but if we can get a good coach and a couple of recruits we won’t be too far off the mark.”
With the decision now made, Leishman said Simpson would have a head start on finding its new leaders, with many opposition clubs already out and about trying to bolster their playing ranks.
“We definitely weren’t going to announce it to the boys at the last minute,” he said.
“I think to be fair on them telling them now was the best thing for the side and now the club can get out and start looking around for next year.
“A lot of clubs are already out there signing up players and if you leave it too long, there’s a fair chance you might miss out (on good candidates).”
Leishman and Harding are hopeful of seeing out the campaign in strong fashion, with the former confirming the pair are committed to coaching out the season.
When a season may restart is up to the Colac and District Football Netball League following the easing of Victoria Government restrictions on community sport, which was announced yesterday.
“I’d love for us to play another couple of games and try and get another couple of wins because the year hasn’t gone exactly to plan,” Leishman said.
“We’ve had a bad run with injuries (this year) but the last two games (before lockdown) we put ourselves in positions to win games against two strong sides in South Colac and Alvie.
“We lost a couple of tight games and missed out on finals but we absolutely think we’re better than that and I’m sure if you asked the better sides, they would say they found it tough playing against Simpson.”