Ex-Falcon Alex Forster excited to lead young group at Pembroke Old Scholars as player/assistant coach
A Payneham Norwood Union premiership star says winning the top tier flag helped him make a decision to return to his school club in 2020.
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Alex Forster had one main aim when he quit the SANFL midway through last year to join Adelaide Footy League division one club Payneham Norwood Union – to win a grand final.
Formerly with Fremantle in the AFL and Norwood in the SANFL, he reached that feat in September when he helped the Falcons triumph over Prince Alfred Old Collegians in this year’s top-tier flag decider.
Now, content as a premiership player, Forster has crossed to division four club Pembroke Old Scholars as a playing assistant coach for the 2020 season.
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The 26-year-old forward is a Pembroke old-scholar and says the shot at lining up alongside schoolmates is an opportunity he could not turn down.
“I've got a lot of good mates who play at Pembroke and I thought that maybe I’d end up playing there one day,” Forster says.
“I’ve loved playing forward at Payneham over the last couple of years.
“I did say to a few people if we didn’t win the flag then it possibly would’ve meant I’d keep playing at Payneham – or it probably would’ve made the decision (to move) a little bit harder because that’s what I wanted to achieve there with a lot of really close mates.
“The fact we did win the flag certainly made it a little bit easier to go back to Pembroke.
“It’s a really young, exciting group (at Pembroke), so I’m looking forward to taking on that leadership role and helping young players improve their game and improve as a team.”
In two seasons at Fremantle, he played one AFL game before returning to the Redlegs – where he made 70 league appearances.
He called time on his career with Norwood in April last year because of injuries and signed with PNU.
Pembroke, meanwhile, finished this season eighth with seven wins, 10 losses and a draw.
Forster, who ended the year as the top tier’s leading goalkicker with 77 majors, says building strong relationships off the footy field will be his focus at Pembroke.
“The real key thing is the building of relationships and building that trust off the field.
“That’s something Payneham have had and will continue to have – that really tight-knit group and building strong relationships off the field between players, coaches and the whole club.
“That then transfers to having success on the field.
“But I am really excited about getting started (with Pembroke).
“It’s going to be a good challenge.”