Denis Knight resigns from Eastern Football League club Norwood

NORWOOD will join Division 1 rivals Rowville and North Ringwood in the hunt for a new coach after Denis Knight announced his resignation from the role.

Denis Knight has resigned as coach of Norwood. Picture: Chris Eastman

NORWOOD will join Division 1 rivals Rowville and North Ringwood in the hunt for a new coach after Denis Knight announced his resignation from the role.

Knight told the club before Norwood’s Round 18 fixture against Noble Park that 2017 would be his last in charge after five years at the helm.

After arriving at the start of the 2013 season, Knight took the Norsemen to their first Division 1 premiership in 2014.

However, Norwood has failed to make finals the past two seasons after its grand final loss to Balwyn in 2015.

“Denis has been an outstanding coach and on-field leader for the past five seasons and has been an integral part of the club’s success over this historic period,” Norwood president Mark Etherington said.

Knight was named Norwood’s coach in the Team of the Decade earlier this month.

The Norsemen were left to rue a slow start to the season, dropping its first three games of the season to play catch-up football for the rest of the year.

Since the EFL went to a top five in 2007, only twice (Norwood in 2010 and Knox in 2011) has a Division 1 side made finals after dropping its first three games.

Knight said earlier this month this year had been a “massive failure” for the club, which won its last six games but missed a top-five berth by two games.

“We always felt we were capable, even at the start of the year I think I said it would be a massive failure if we didn’t play finals,” Knight said.

“It has been a disappointing year, we just didn’t play good enough for long enough in games earlier in the year.”