Captain Andy Read to step in as Glenunga coach, with Michael Wundke also signing at Rams
Rising Adelaide Footy League club Glenunga has looked within for its coaching replacement and the Rams have also made a recruiting splash by signing a three-time Ken Farmer Medallist.
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Glenunga’s bid for a fourth-straight premiership will be led by a star player stepping up as coach and the signing of a former SANFL goalkicking gun.
The rising Adelaide Footy League club has appointed three-time premiership skipper Andy Read as playing coach to replace John Cunningham, who stepped down earlier this month.
The Rams have also made a recruiting splash by luring triple Ken Farmer Medallist Michael Wundke to Webb Oval to play alongside brothers James and Nick.
Read, who joined the club after playing 17 league games for North Adelaide, said he would take charge of the division two club this season before reassessing ahead of 2021.
“I’ve absolutely loved the place ever since I left North … we’ve started to create something pretty special here,” Read, 31, said.
“I don’t know if I want to be a coach full-time or if I’m ready but I’m willing to for the rest of the year with some support before we find someone a bit more permanent.
“I don’t want the club to go back to what it was before we got there, we’ve worked this hard the last three years and don’t want to undo any of that.”
Read said he would be supported by football director Rocky Butterworth, B-grade coach Michael Beech and other senior players.
Cunningham led the Rams to the division three flag in September in his first season in the role before he mutually parted ways with the club earlier this month.
It followed back-to-back premierships under Brian Leys in 2017 and 2018.
If local football gets underway this year, the Rams will be shooting for four straight flags and triple Ken Farmer Medallist Wundke will help the cause.
The former North Adelaide, South Adelaide and Woodville-West Torrens full-forward will pull the boots on for Glenunga when matches do not clash with his role as an assistant coach with Sturt.
“We’re hoping to hoping to get him for a few games,” Read said.
“I went to school with the Wundke boys and have always been pretty close with them, and I know it's a goal of theirs to all play a game together.
“I’m not sure if we will play this year with the current situation … but hopefully we’ll get an opportunity to see what div two is like and if we’re around the mark.”
Brothers James, Nick and Sam Wundke played key roles in the Rams’ division three flag success in 2019.
However, Sam signed with Sturt in the off-season to have a second crack at SANFL football.