EFL 2019: Norwood climbing the Premier Division ladder
The criticism on Norwood in recent years is it has not delivered on its potential, but first-year mentor Marty Pask has the Norsemen on the cusp of their first finals series in three years.
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An ability to embrace change under first-year mentor Marty Pask has inspired a talent-laden Norwood up the EFL Premier Division ladder this year.
The criticism on the Norsemen in recent seasons has been an inability to deliver on their potential.
The club won the 2014 premiership and made the decider the following year but has missed finals for the past three seasons.
But Pask has Norwood in contention for its first top-five appearance in three seasons.
The Norsemen are a game clear in fifth with four games remaining.
“I think this year, we’ve made a real effort to appreciate what we needed to do better and we’ve been really honest as a group and looked at a long of things and lot of ways where we can be better as a side,” Pask said.
“One thing I have really tried to help the players with is helping them understand what they actually value in a football game, so every Saturday come 2pm, regardless of the result, they know and they walk away understanding what is important.
“I think the improvement this season has been around our ability to value what’s important in a game of football.
“We know what that is, we understand what that is, we review what that is and we hold each other to account to what that is.”
Pask praised his group for changing its mentality.
“I just love this group of players because they have had the ability to change and the older players have changed and have had this fantastic attitude towards club-first and team-first,” he said.
“I love how some of our younger guys have embraced opportunity and have been hungry to learn and have been hungry to grow.
“They have this real value system now of what’s important in a game and they’re holding each other accountable.
“I’m just really pleased to be part of a club that has embraced all this and we’re really enjoying our time together.”
Norwood had just one win from its first four games but has recovered to hold an 8-6 record.
Wins over Blackburn, Rowville and South Croydon have confirmed its finals credentials.
It has games to come against Montrose (10th), Balwyn (second), Blackburn (third) and Doncaster (eighth).
Pask said his side had embraced expectations it would be a strong team.
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“You’ve got to appreciate that is always going to be there so it’s about talking to the players about what they actually want to get out of the season,” he said.
“I think that has been a huge shift for us this year. We’ve done a lot of things culturally that I believe have improved us as a football team.
“I also feel a lot of the players, particularly the guys that have been there for a little while, have embraced change, they’ve embraced new positions and they’ve embraced a new training program.
“They’ve made my job very easy because they’ve certainly embraced me as a coach and what I’ve tried to bring in.
“Once you’ve got that connection, you can then get on with trying to build a strong game plan and system you believe is going to hold up.
“It’s been great, in terms of their willingness to learn and grow as a group and I think that has been the change.”
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