By JARROD POTTER
A DECADE after his last stint at the club, St John’s OC Football Club coach Ben McGee has returned with a check-list of ambitions for the Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) team.
He’s not focused on living off past success – which includes the 2005 VAFA Division-3 premiership when he last coached at Thomas Carroll Reserve – but instead is striving solely towards the club’s next achievement.
“I was part of a fairly successful football culture at the school and then was very fortunate to be involved as a coach of the club back in 04-05 with that culminating in a premiership,” McGee said.
“The stars have aligned and I’m back here ready for the challenge.
“It’s great to be a premiership coach but you can’t reflect on that – it has to be about what we’re going to do next.
“The key to coming back here is that I’m hungry and that’s why I do it.”
McGee returns to the JOCs from Southern Football League’s Clayton with different coaching philosophies and understands evolution is the number-one aim to staying competitive.
“You’ve got to move with the times and evolve… got to be progressive,” McGee said.
“The way you initiate your conversations with players – you have got to be able to be flexible and patient – these are two areas I’ve had to really evolve over the last 10 years.
“Whilst they’re important you’ve still got to be able to maintain a fairly intensive purpose in your actions so it’s challenging and hopefully over the next two years there will be more good days than bad days.”
With St John’s standing as the highest ranked VAFA club in the south eastern suburbs, McGee wanted players in the wider area to know the JOCs are keen to recruit from all ways of life and all backgrounds, to forge a strong community on and off the field.
“It’s a great community club and has a different ethos to the financial clubs around the area,” McGee said.
“It’s an environment where you’re measured not just on your football ability but your football character and that comes in regards to just having a crack.
“We’re a very multicultural club… embracing multiculturalism and all religions… we just want to build the game in the Dandenong and south-east area.”
The club is now recruiting new players and looking for main sponsors. For more information, email the St John’s at info@stjohnsocfc.com.au.
