Inaugural Central District women’s coach Shaun Ribbons excited for the club’s debut season

Central District’s inaugural SANFLW coach Shaun Ribbons is excited about building a team from scratch and the club’s debut season, which kicks off in a month.

Central District players Aisha Thomas and Kimberley Fry, pictured when the Bulldogs’ bid to join the SANFLW was granted. Picture: James Elsby

WHEN Central District’s women’s team runs on to Richmond Oval in one month, all the hard work coach Shaun Ribbons, his assistants and players have put in will finally come to fruition.

The Bulldogs play their inaugural SANFLW match against West Adelaide on February 15 – seven months after being granted a licence to join the third season of the competition.

But for Ribbons, 46, the planning, scouting and recruiting began long before he was officially announced as the mentor in September.

Ribbons, who had been an assistant with Central’s under-18 side for the past three years, said he had enjoyed building the women’s team from scratch.

Central District SANFLW coach Shaun Ribbons with players Shannon Murphy and Abbey Scheer. The trio is keen for the Bulldogs’ inaugural season to start. Picture: Belinda Gray

“Putting together the squad was a lot of hard work behind the scenes – it was 12 months of watching games and scouting players,” Ribbons, a father-of-two from Greenock, says.

“But it was really rewarding.

“It’s (the season) come up really quick.

Now that we are a month out from round one, it’s pretty exciting

“The thing that appealed to me most was the fact we were starting from absolute scratch.

“It’s such a unique opportunity.”

In July, the SANFL announced it would add Central and Woodville-West Torrens to the women’s competition for 2019, bringing the league to eight teams.

Ribbons says the Bulldogs had a “targeted approach” when selecting their squad.

Central District SANFLW women’s coach Shaun Ribbons during pre-season. Picture: Desirée McMahon

He watched about 90 per cent of his players line up for their respective amateur teams and conducted one-on-one interviews before selecting them.

Ribbons believes they are building something special and the players are hungry to do well.

“We put together a set of criteria and at the very top of that was their character,” he says.

“We also had some footy-based stuff – we prioritised speed and the ability to win the one-on-ones.

“We wanted to get girls that are really competitive.

“We built the team in a way that will help us for the future, too.

“We’ve got a third of girls that are under 17 and a third of girls that are above 25, which is really important for us in terms of age and experience.”

Ribbons is unsure how many wins his side will notch up in its first campaign but is optimistic the team will hold its own.

“Obviously we don’t have a crystal ball … but I feel like we are going to be able to compete really well.”