EDFL 2019: Northern Saints sack coach Brett Kennerley
After several weeks of innuendo, Northern Saints have given first-year mentor Brett Kennerley his marching orders as they prepare to appoint a fourth coach in five seasons.
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Northern Saints will have a fourth coach in five years in 2020 after giving Brett Kennerley his marching orders.
Kennerley’s contract with the EDFL Division 2 club was terminated on Monday night after he served one season of a two-year deal.
Rumours have been rife in recent weeks that Kennerley’s hold on the top job was shaky after the Saints missed finals.
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“I think I saw it coming. There was a lot of scuttlebutt and stuff going on, so certainly not shaken by the news,” Kennerley said.
“But probably just a little bit disappointed it got to this point.”
The Saints finished one game outside the top four after claiming the minor premiership the previous season.
They won six of their first eight fixtures before a four-match losing run derailed their campaign.
The likes of Matthew Gray, Mousty Hammoud, Khodr Taleb, Nick Bruno and Matthew D’Angelo (who has crossed to Essendon Doutta Stars) had interrupted seasons because of injury and suspension.
Kennerley said the club expressed concerns over player development and was of the view that “maybe I wasn’t open to giving enough guys opportunities”.
Paul Dunn was axed at the end of 2018 after leading Northern Saints to the top of the ladder after the home-and-away rounds before a straight-set finals exit.
Asked for his opinion on the turnover of coaches, Kennerley said: “The irony of all that is I actually quite enjoyed working with the playing group.
“To be fair, not all of them would have enjoyed me. I can be a hard taskmaster.
“I do have different expectations to what some of them may have been used to, but I certainly enjoyed my time there. There’s a really good group of guys there.”
Kennerley said he was unsure what he would do next year, conceding he may be left to work on his golf handicap.
While his tenure ended with a feeling of unfinished business, Kennerley said the Saints had a bright future.
“I honestly believe there’s a list there, when fully fit and raring to go, that’s good enough to win the flag in that division,” he said.
“This year was obviously a bit of an anomaly because I believe (premier) Sunbury Kangaroos were just a long way above the rest of the competition, even though they had a few close games.
“I think next year we could have given it a real tilt, but not to be.”
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