EDFL: Tim Bongetti to retire from playing and step up as full-time coach
East Keilor coach Tim Bongetti will hang up the boots on Saturday as he opens up on his decision to retire and gives his verdict on the Cougars’ Premier Division return.
Essendon
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It’s a time for reflection if you’re Tim Bongetti.
The East Keilor senior coach is set to hang up the boots as a player on Saturday following the Cougars final Premier Division game of the season against Glenroy.
The news was made official after East Keilor announced Bongetti had re-signed as coach for 2023.
Bongetti replaced now club president Pat Christofi at the end of the 2021 season leading the Cougars in their first top tier season since 2006.
He’s gone onto play 14 of a possible 17 games and sits second in the club’s goalkicking charts with 31 majors.
“I’m going while I still have tickets in the bank,” Bongetti said.
“I’ve been starting to slow down in patches and coaching is the next phase of my career and the direction I want to go in. It’s time to put all of my eggs in that basket.
“My old man is my harshest critic and he said when I was the ability to jump like I could when I was younger than I probably had a couple of years left in the lower grades but I want to coach.
“I didn’t play against Avondale Heights and had the experience of coaching from the sidelines it was very different. When I tore my calf in round one, I probably didn’t prepare myself right to play because I was so focused on coaching and preparing the group.
“My assistants have done a fantastic job this year and they’ve helped to ease the pressure on me which has been terrific.
“I’ll go out there this weekend and enjoy every moment of it. Hopefully I can snag a few as well.”
East Keilor’s hopes of a finals berth came to an end at the weekend after going down by four goals.
Even if they had of beaten Keilor finals footy remained unlikely with the Panthers having a much stronger percentage.
They’re guaranteed to finish the season in fifth place, a finish Bongetti admits he was targeting at the start of the season.
“I would have loved to play finals but we’re above par for this year,” he said.
“For the first nine rounds, when we were 7-2, I reckon we caught a lot of clubs off guard. Clubs usually come up and can sometimes beat easybeats especially for teams at the top of the ladder.
“Our goal was always to get to Premier Division and stay up. We’ve shown we can compete with the top sides. I think fatigue in our group has taken its toll on some blokes — it’s a big step up to the top tier especially after a few years on and off.
“We’ve had our challenges along the way with Covid, injuries and illness but I’m so proud of this group.”
There has been a number of impressive performers along the way for the Cougars this season including Brandon Coletta, Chris Stewart, Dion Hill, Heath Shaw and Victor Micallef.
But the Cougars will be aiming to make inroads on the top four next season.
“One thing for me as a new coach is that I’ve been able to gather intel about the teams we’re playing against us,” Bongetti said.
“That’s one thing we’ll be working on from day one of pre-season. We’ll have a better understanding of what we’re coming up against next season.
“Hopefully we can continue to improve our depth as well which will come down to the boys doing their own stuff away from the club.
“The club believes it’s in a really healthy position to move forward with.”
East Keilor’s clash with Glenroy will be played at Sewell Reserve from 2.15pm.
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