VFL: Matt Primus reflects on coaching lessons, philosophies ahead of his 2025 return to hot-seat with Southport

Over a decade after he parted ways with Port Adelaide, Matt Primus is set to get back in the coaching hot seat at Southport. What to expect.

Matt Primus. Picture: Southport Sharks.

There aren’t too many better mentors in AFL football than Mark Williams.

And there aren’t too many people that have spent more time under his tutelage than Matthew Primus, who will be the next senior coach of Southport’s VFL outfit after Steve Daniel made the decision to step down at the end of the 2024 season.

“He certainly set a standard,” recalled Primus of Williams.

“You connect with most of your coaches but some you love the way they coach or you love their style, Mark is certainly one of them.

“I love to read about other coaches from other sports and all those sorts of things, but ‘Choco’ was definitely my main coach for the majority of my playing career, he was a guy who I took a fair bit from.

“You enjoy seeing how much he loves coaching and improving people and that’s what it’s all about.”

Melbourne assistant coach Mark Williams has had a significant influence on Matt Primus. Photo by Michael Klein

As a player, captain, and then later assistant coach, Primus would spend over a decade under Williams at Port Adelaide and succeeded him as the club’s coach after ‘Choco’ resigned in 2010.

Primus had a 5-2 record as Port’s caretaker coach in 2010, and picked up a further eight wins across the following two seasons before he and the club parted ways at the back-end of 2012.

“I didn’t last as long as I wanted but it’s all part of the learning, those things are only worthwhile going through if you learn and grow from them,” Primus said.

“I had four or five years as an assistant but probably didn’t spread my wings enough.

“The opportunity doesn’t come around to coach your own team that often but especially at a higher level.

“I still have always harboured ambitions to do that and this opportunity came around.

“There’s not many AFL jobs but there’s not many VFL jobs either. I’m looking forward to getting stuck into this opportunity (with Southport).”

Southport assistant coach Matt Primus chats to the players. Picture credit: TJ Yelds, NEAFL.

Competitiveness and connection were the two key traits that underpinned the lessons Primus took from Williams.

“His ability to get to know players and be able to hit them up when they needed effort or put an arm around them when they needed that, and just understanding that,” Primus said.

“If anything that’s more important in today’s game than it ever has been.”

After his time at Port Adelaide Primus spent six years as a Gold Coast Suns assistant where he worked under Guy McKenna, Rodney Eade and Stuart Dew before joining Southport as an assistant in 2019.

He will be just the second man with the experience of an AFL head coach to take the helm at Southport. Following in the footsteps of the great Norm Dare, who spent 1990 as the Brisbane Bears head coach was a four-time Sharks premiership coach across three separate stints either side of his Bears shift.

Incumbent Southport head coach Matt Primus (right) and the outgoing Steve Daniel talk tactics. The pair have been at the Sharks together since 2019. Picture: Southport Sharks.

As has been the case with Steve Daniel at the Sharks for the past seven years, relationships will be at the fore of Primus’ coaching philosophy.

“My number one thing is to build really strong relationships with the players,” he said.

“That’s not a mate relationship, that’s just a strong relationship. Especially at VFL, we’re asking a fair bit of our players.

“In the end players want to come to a club that’s winning but feel valued at the same time … they’re the two things that I like to drive and will be continuing to drive.

“To be able to do it sitting in the big chair will be a great challenge.

“Steve (Daniel) has set a high bar but I’ve got a bit of living up to do.”

The Sharks will host North Melbourne in a crunch round 21 clash at Fankhauser Reserve from 12.05pm on Saturday.

Originally published as VFL: Matt Primus reflects on coaching lessons, philosophies ahead of his 2025 return to hot-seat with Southport