By David Nagel
Most clubs hit rock-bottom at some stage in their history – but a ‘pro-active’ Bunyip is determined to turn around its fortunes quicker than most.
The Bulldogs decided to part ways with their 2022 coach Tim McGibney at the end of last year, with the ramifications of that move having a larger consequence than first thought.
Bunyip stands by its decision, but the end result is that of the 17 players that played 10 or more games last year…only two have played senior footy in 2023.
The mass exodus of quality players has had a devastating impact on the club’s ability to be competitive ‘on-field’.
And being the only club in the WGFNC to not field an under-18 team also puts the Bulldogs behind the eight-ball.
But, off-field, the club understands its predicament; and more importantly understands how it got there, and is determined to look forward with a new vision and purpose.
And the first opportunity to take a giant stride forward revolves around its senior coaching role.
Lachlan Petch took on the role at late notice, in a desperate time for the club, but has no expectation on holding the job for next season.
That creates the rare opportunity of being the first club on the market for a new leader.
“The key word for us is pro-active, we don’t want to be a reactive club anymore,” Bunyip president Noel Mollison explained.
“We’re trying to be extremely pro-active, and we have an opportunity right now to appoint a coach for 2024, mid-season, with the blessing of our current coach Lachlan Petch.
“We have a selection panel set up, including Aussie Jones, Bobbie-Lee Blay and myself, so we’re hoping that in the coming months we can appoint a senior coach and actively retain and recruit players for 2024 and beyond.”
Jones, the former St Kilda star and vice-president at Bunyip, is also playing a key role in the rebuild…coaching the under 16s this year.
Jones has 26 players on the list, with roughly half of those set to move up a grade next season and provide the platform for the club’s return to under-18 footy next year.
The Bulldogs also have a wealth of under 14s and are extremely confident of fielding all four teams in 2024.
That’s one of the key pillars that the Bulldogs are looking to build upon.
“The development and retention of our juniors, every club wants that, but I reckon it goes further than that,” Mollison said.
“If we don’t have stability off the field, you will lack it on the field.
“Past history will show that at all football clubs, and we’re no different.
“We’re keen to get everything right off the field…from general committee, to canteen, to football operations, and if we get those things right the rest will flow.”
Jones has been around football clubs all his life, but admits that Bunyip has been caught napping since the WGFNC began in 2017.
But he says now is the perfect time for change.
“We’ve probably been caught behind since West Gippy began in investing in our footy department,” Jones conceded.
“The coach is the face of your footy department, but it’s got to the point now where the senior coach needs a football manager, full-time in that role.
“That position is something we will also fill, someone with experience who can deal with all areas of a football club.
“Someone that can deal with the committee, but also coaches, players and head up the footy side of things.
“The biggest and best clubs have had that in place for some time; those extra couple of people to support the coach.
“That will relieve the pressure on the senior coach on the day-to-day running of a football club.”
Jones acknowledges the Bulldogs are coming from a long way back, but have the spirit to survive…and then thrive!
“We’re not naïve enough to ignore the situation we’re in, but we’re making a pretty good fist of the situation we’re in,” Jones said.
“The environment, the culture, it’s really strong, and that’s a great platform for any footy club to build on.
“A lot of that comes down to Petchy, the senior coach, who stood up in a time of real need and desperation.
“He initially did it reluctantly, but knew he was the best man for the job, and he exceeds our expectations with everything he does.
“He’s buy-in has been outstanding and he’s laying a really strong foundation for the new coach coming in.
“We’re happy to spend up to the (salary) cap, we’ll be aggressive with our recruiting, and development will be a focus, along with bringing back some Bunyip kids that have explored other options.
“The new coach will get a huge surprise with the support they get from our footy club.”
Mollison said there were many positives for Bunyip to build on.
“I don’t think we’ve been in a better financial position,” he said.
“We’ve got massive support from local businesses, and the local community, injecting money into our football club.
“We’ve got fantastic local supporters that show up every week, putting money through the gate, canteen and bar, and our membership drive has been solid.
“Financially we’re sitting really well.
“We didn’t charge fees for our juniors this year, and given we have no under 18s, we’ve passed that onto the reserves.
“We’ve coped with that outlay and we’re still sitting really good.
“On-field we’ve got a good crop of youngsters coming through, and put them with a couple of key recruits and all of a sudden, we’re competitive again.
“The culture and feeling around the place are awesome, it couldn’t be better considering the predicament the on-field is in.
“It’s a struggle right now…but we are very excited about the future.”
