Eastern Football League: East Ringwood’s Ben Osborne signs on for 2021
East Ringwood has locked in its coach for 2021 - here’s how he believes his club can bridge the gap to become a contender...
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East Ringwood senior coach Ben Osborne has put pen to paper for 2021, as he looks to take his group the next step in a tight Division 1 competition.
The Roos finished in seventh position at the end of last season despite knocking over four of the top five sides, falling short of a finals berth by four points.
Osborne was unveiled as the club’s new coach in September last year and is yet to oversee an official match at the helm.
But the former VFL and South Croydon assistant believes the foundations have been laid for his club to bridge the gap in the league’s second tier, following relegation from the top division at the end of 2018. The club last featured in finals in 2008.
“I think what needed to happen was continuity from the playing group and a program put in place,” Osborne said.
“I was able to get a high-performance manager from Coburg to come with me … he’s outstanding at being able to keep players on the park. I think a bit of luck with injuries and all that sort of stuff – we had heaps of injuries in 2019.
“And just learn and get better every training session, and you can only do that if you turn up.
“Our numbers were outstanding in pre-season - what I’ve seen is a group that’s really keen to get better and move forward.”
Osborne said the list’s age demographic comprising experience and young-up-and-coming talent made his role an exciting proposition.
“That’s what drew me to the club in the first place, is the junior strength but also knowing that our top-end players – Andrew Renton, Chris Cerni, James Belo – they’re as good a player as there is in the comp,” he said.
“We’ve got the experience there, we just need to get the best out of them first and foremost and just get a program in place that can develop these kids as quickly as we possibly can and fast-track our development.
“And give these (senior) guys nearing the end of their career some success as well as long-term for the club.
“I see this decade as being a really exciting one for the club if we get it right.”
Announcements on player re-signings are expected in the coming weeks, and Osborne is confident the current group will stick together.
“There’s a lot of good mates here and they want to stick together … I can’t really see too many moving on,” he said.
“Clearly the talent is there throughout the whole division but especially at our club, it’s just about the continuity of that group staying together for a long period.
“If we’re able to keep our group together and build our depth with our juniors coming through … it’s a pretty exciting time to be around the club.”
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