EDFL 2018: New West Coburg coach Dale May catches coaching bug
DALE May’s taste of senior coaching two years ago whet his appetite and left him wanting more.
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DALE May’s taste of senior coaching two years ago whet his appetite and left him wanting more.
The Strathmore stalwart took charge of the Essendon District Football League club in the second half of 2016 after Craig Clinnick vacated the top job.
May has signed on for his next challenge and will steer Division 1 outfit West Coburg for the next two seasons, with the experienced Robert Hyde joining him as his assistant and director of coaching.
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“It made me realise I can coach at that level and it gave me taste of coaching young men,” May said of his stint at the Mores.
“If I didn’t have that, I probably wouldn’t have gone for the (West Coburg) job.”
The 32-year-old was encouraged to apply for the role at the Burgers by Digby Morrell, who has spent the past decade at the helm of Strathmore and West Coburg and will coach Pascoe Vale in 2019.
May arrives with a decorated resume, having been a member of four premiership-winning sides at the Mores and captaining two flags (2011 and 2014).
“I captained Strathmore for five or six years and had strong leaders around me when I was a kid,” he said.
“I’ve got that leadership experience and obviously Strathmore’s good culture. Every club has got good fellas at it and West Coburg’s culture will hopefully be a bit stronger with me there.”
The presence of Hyde, who coached Calder Cannons to back-to-back premierships in 2003 and 2004 while May was a player at the TAC Cup club, will be crucial.
Hyde has held the top job at several clubs, including Northern Blues and more recently Greensborough, and played 63 games at the top level for Collingwood and Essendon.
May is planning to take the field next year after making three senior appearances for Strathmore this season, but he will have ample support off the ground.
“He was one of my favourite coaches growing up,” May said of Hyde.
“He was perfect at the Cannons with the 17 and 18-year-olds, so I’m looking forward to having his experience at West Coburg to help me out. I’m going to suck the knowledge out of him.
“They wanted a playing coach. Hopefully the body’s all right.
“I’m going to have to do a few other things like yoga and pilates and try and keep these hammies going as long as I can.”
After four years in Premier Division, West Coburg was relegated this season after finishing with a 2-16 record, one game behind Essendon Doutta Stars.
Buoyed by the fact the Burgers are likely to retain most of their squad, May said they hoped to make an immediate return to the top flight.
“Their aim is to go back up to Premier Division,” he said.
“I think they’re a Premier Division club to be honest. They were obviously a bit unlucky to go down with Doutta Stars playing good footy late.
“We’re in talks with a couple of ex-Strathmore players. You always need to add two or three to your list every year to obviously improve and make another step up. Hopefully we retain 90-95 per cent of the squad.
“They’ve been in Premier Division for four years, so a lot of those blokes only know Premier Division.
“They’re going to be strong footballers.”
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