AFL Daily: North Melbourne poach Sydney assistant coach Rhyce Shaw to tighten defence
SYDNEY assistant coach Rhyce Shaw is set to join North Melbourne at the end of the season after being poached to tighten the Kangaroos' defence in 2019. Re-cap all of Thursday's breaking news here.
SYDNEY assistant coach Rhyce Shaw will join North Melbourne at the end of the season.
The Herald Sun can reveal the highly-rated mentor and brains behind Sydney’s well-drilled and meticulous backline has agreed on the move to Arden Street.
Shaw will be tasked with tightening up the Roos’ backline, which, at times this season, was far too easily scored against.
It ultimately punctured the club’s surprise finals hopes, with Essendon, Sydney and Western Bulldogs inflicting late-season body blows in high-scoring shootouts.
North line-breakers Marley Williams, Jamie Macmillan, Shaun Atley, Sam Wright and Ed Vickers-Willis should also benefit from the 237-game veteran’s first-hand experience.
Shaw was promoted to John Longmire’s senior panel last year, following Stewart Dew’s appointment at Gold Coast Suns, after being crowned the AFL Coaches Association’s Assistant Coach of the Year.
The Swans premiership defender went straight into development coaching at the club after his retirement in 2015, and enjoyed immediate success, taking the NEAFL team to consecutive minor premierships and grand final appearances.
Longmire lauded Shaw’s seamless transition last year.
“Rhyce is fantastic with relationships, sensational with football knowledge and just a great asset to our football club,” Longmire said.
Shaw will replace existing backline coach Josh Drummond, who is set to move to the Gold Coast for family reasons.
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Originally published as AFL Daily: North Melbourne poach Sydney assistant coach Rhyce Shaw to tighten defence