Former AFL analyst Finn Anscombe joins Newcomb as a playing senior assistant coach

A former statistics expert at two AFL clubs and Champion Data will bring some high level footy IQ to a Bellarine football club next season.

It was far from an overly detailed handover for the Sydney Swans’ latest analyst.

It was 2019 and budding numbers man Finn Anscombe had landed a dream job in the Harbour City.

However, the person he was replacing found it hard to accurately describe the pressure of being in the coaches box on game day, sitting next to the likes of John Longmire and Dean Cox.

“He pretty much just sat me down and said: ‘Look, I just can’t explain to you what it’s like in there, you just have to experience it’,” Anscombe said.

“I just walked away from that thinking, not that I don’t believe him, but surely there’s a way that you can describe it to me, nothing’s that intense that you can’t find the words.

“I found out pretty quickly.”

Finn Anscombe was an analyst with the Sydney Swans for 11 months. Picture: Finn Anscombe.

Sadly, after an opportunity at Champion Data eventually enticed Anscombe back to Melbourne close to 12 months later, the pandemic would then put a momentarily pause on his burgeoning sports stats career.

However, just over three years later, Anscombe will now bring a wealth of IP to Newcomb Football Club, for the second time, when he starts a new role as a playing senior assistant.

Combined with a full time job at Cricket Australia in game development, the Lara-based Anscombe has been in regular dialogue with Newcomb coach Tony Mirabella ever since he was appointed in July this year, following the sudden departure of Mitch Troy.

It’s a familiar step for the Hepburn product.

Tempted across in 2022 by Burras coach Johno Leoncini to play 17 games, before a change of circumstances saw him return to the Central Highlands League after just one season.

Finn Anscombe returned to Hepburn Football Club in 2023. Picture: Hepburn Football Club.

“I see it as an opportunity for me to cement myself as a Geelong person in a footballing aspect, as a player and a coach,” Anscombe said of his return to Grinter Reserve.

“I’m really excited to work under somebody like Tony.

“The way that we think and see the game is quite similar.

“The vision that he has for the Newcomb Football Club is exciting and it’s a journey I’m certainly keen to be a part of.”

Don’t accuse Anscombe of being a pure numbers man, though.

Although he was fascinated by statistics from a young age, it had to be linked to the sporting world to pique his interest.

“If I was sitting down in a Year Nine maths class, I think I’d struggle to concentrate,” he said.

“But if you start speaking about sport and numbers and watching games and breaking down statistics... it really get the wheels turning in my head.

“In a sporting context, definitely, I’ve always had that fascination of numbers.”

Finn Anscombe gives direction to his Hepburn teammates. Picture: Finn Anscombe.

After completing a degree in exercise sports science, Anscombe was fortunate to find himself taken into the first cohort of La Trobe University’s inaugural Masters in Sports Analytics.

He would combine study with a Melbourne-based recruiting analyst role with the Brisbane Lions.

After close to two years with the Lions, Anscombe was taken on by Sydney, providing a point of difference for the coaching staff.

He believes group think and similar attitude can lead to poor decision making in stressful situations.

However, nothing would prepare him for the “intense” experience of game day.

“I’ve really never felt anything like it,” he said.

His first taste was a Round 1 game against the Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium where the Swans found themselves six goals down midway through the third term, before almost pinching the game.

“Seeing how the coaches interact was absolutely fascinating,” he said.

Finn Anscombe played footy for Hepburn FC. Picture: Finn Anscombe.

“I’ve been incredibly lucky to work with what I think is some of the more outstanding minds (in the league).

“Not only were they exceptional footballers, just the way that they conduct themselves as coaches was fantastic.”

Working alongside heavyweights like Longmire and Cox, Anscombe said he would be grilled for information on a “fairly constant” basis.

Also charged with cutting up vision for line coaches, he would get peppered with requests for information.

“That was one of the hard parts ... there were times where you’ve got four or five things going on and everyone’s issue was the most important,” he said.

“There were some times I’d barely know what the score is three quarters of the way through the first quarter, because I’ve just got my head down providing stats, loading up vision.”

In the cauldron of a coaches box, thick skin was an absolute essential.

“A lot of things get said and you can’t take it to heart and you just need to move on,” he said.

“Everyone reacts to stressful situations differently and sometimes people just need a release.

“It’s really shaped me as a coach.

Finn Anscombe won two premierships with Hepburn. Picture: Finn Anscombe.

“The best coaches that I’ve come across are those with that even temperament, they don’t get too high and they don’t get too low.

“When you’re winning it’s awesome, when you’re losing it can get pretty difficult in there.”

Anscombe said sport analytics allowed him to “go deeper into the game through the use of numbers”.

“The best data analysts are those that are able to pull out the objectives, what they see through the data and statistics, and also what they see through their eyes, the subjective side of things,” he said.

“Meshing those two together ... that creates the perfect blend to inform decision making.

“I always though that was my point of difference.

“I’m able to view the game ... subjectively and then also add numbers as another layer to it.”

However, he said there was no silver bullet when it came to data.

“The combination of what you see, both on your computer when you're crunching the numbers and what you actually see out on the ground from a sporting perspective, that’s when you usually come up with the best decisions,” he said.

“The numbers can back up your thinking, or you can see something from a numbers perspective and it takes you down a different rabbithole.

“There’s so much information to analyse ... that’s one of the hard parts, the challenge that I really enjoy, is breaking down the game when there’s so much going on and it’s so frenetic.”

Rounding out his footy education, Anscombe has also spent eight months as a talent scout for Melbourne Football Club in 2016.

“I loved the recruiting aspect,” he said.

Finn Anscombe in the Sydney Swans coaches box with Buddy Franklin. Picture: Hepburn Football Club.

“You’re seeing players get drafted, and three or four years watching their development.

“That’s one of the really hard parts, particularly in Australian Rules, you’re essentially recruiting kids.

“A lot of the time it is really difficult to predict how good they’re going to be.

“It’s something I still have a keen interest in, that’s for sure.”

Now full time with Cricket Australia as an analytics lead, Anscombe is enjoying being at the other end of the sporting pathway.

“Working in high performance you see the fruits of the labour,” he said.

“Now I’m on the other side of the fence, and I actually see just how much is involved with getting cricket played in certain areas and growing the game.”

Originally published as Former AFL analyst Finn Anscombe joins Newcomb as a playing senior assistant coach