EFNL 2026: How ‘mountain of work’ has Nunawading set to rise from recess
Plunged into recess just ahead of the 2025 season, the near-century-old club is set to return to the field in 2026 – and in time for its centenary.
NUNAWADING coach Thomas Flood says it’s the sheer culmination of “hard work coming together”.
The near-century-old Eastern league club will return from recess in 2026 after a tumultuous off-season 12 months ago sidelined its senior men’s program.
With the recent release of the Division 4 fixture, the league confirmed the Lions were back – but not without sleeves rolled up and plenty of elbow grease.
“I think the phrase ‘hard work coming together’ is something we’ve been clutching at in the last couple of months as we got to the pointy end, the league had put a fair bit of pressure on us to have things finalised and ready to go before the off-season really kicked off,” Flood said.
“To get the tick of approval was a credit to (club president) Adrian Salanitri especially, he’s put in an absolute mountain of work, and the rest of the committee.
“They’ve been phenomenal support for myself and obviously the work they’ve put in behind the scenes to get players, sponsors and all that sort of stuff has been huge.”
A player exodus at the end of 2024 mirrored that of Doncaster’s demise – but the neighbouring Sharks have also satisfied league requirements to relaunch in Division 4.
“We had virtually identical targets to hit from what I understand of the process,” Flood said, which included scouting enough player signings ahead of Christmas.
“From a senior player point of view, we’re confident if Round 1 was tomorrow that we’d be running out with a full side.”
But where did the players come from?
“Mainly existing connections with current players and committee members,” Flood said, also adding a couple through popular local footy recruiting social network, Trainstop.
Nunawading’s under-19s – which played as a combined team with Forest Hill in 2025 – will revert to its stand-alone identity, while a decision is yet to be made on a reserves team.
“The big one for us was maintaining the group of under-19s we fielded in the season just gone,” Flood said.
“They’ve got really stuck into our pre-season which is awesome – it’s a big step-up for them going from what was a pretty relaxed training standard last year to a senior-level training standard this year. They’ve relished that.”
With the new-look Lions to compete in Division 4’s nine-team competition, Flood said the season would be measured with “how we’re developing as individual players, as a team and as a club as a whole (with) identity and culture.”
“Comparing where we were when we kicked off pre-season a couple of weeks ago to where we are when we start Round 1, to where we finish the end of our first season together, those are the milestones we’ll get excited about rather than necessarily what the win-loss column looks like,” he said.
“It’s essentially a completely new outfit – there’s no-one there from five and 10 years ago when the club was in a lot of trouble, it’s a whole new committee, a whole new coaching staff and a completely new playing group.”
Flood, who was appointed to the senior role in June, will serve as a playing-coach among an emerging group.
The 33-year-old ruckman and first-time mentor says development excites him most.
“A big part of footy coaching for me is passing those lessons about how amazing football can be and how to get better at it onto the next generation,” Flood said.
“We’re going to be a really young squad, so that capacity and desire for development is really there amongst this group.”
But addressing its off-field deficiencies has been just as crucial in the club’s bid to rise from recess.
“I think every community football club in Australia would say they’d love some more volunteers, and we’re certainly not exempt from that,” Flood said.
“If there’s anyone reading this who wants to come down and get involved, please do. We’re very welcoming to anyone who’s happy to put in, whether that’s five minutes once a month or a few hours every week. Every little bit helps.
“It’s been a big part of our recruitment drive – not just players to fill out a team, but also recruiting people who are happy to do off-field roles and are good people to have around the club.”
Formed in 1927 as Tunstall Football Club, Nunawading’s centenary year looms.
And for Flood and his proud Lions, returning in time to mark the milestone could be the crowning jewel in the club’s rise from the doldrums.
“We’re super-excited that we’re going to be existing and playing for that. It’s huge for the club.”
Nunawading opens its 2026 Eastern league Division 4 season at home to Forest Hill on April 11.
Revealed: All the latest Eastern league coaching moves
