West Preston-Lakeside premiership coach Rob Maiorana signs on for 2022

The final piece of the Northern Football League coaching puzzle is locked in with Rob Maiorana re-signing as West Preston-Lakeside coach for 2022.

Rob Maiorana locked in at West Preston-Lakeside. Picture: Hamish Blair

Rob Maiorana isn’t going anywhere, completing the Northern Football League coaching puzzle.

The two-time West Preston-Lakeside coach has re-signed for 2022 after weighing up his future over the last couple of months.

He’ll be joined by a former rival with ex-Macleod coach Christian Stagliano signing on as senior assistant coach.

The disappointing end to the season, cut short by Melbourne’s sixth COVID lockdown, was a critical factor in Maiorana’s return.

The Roosters were two games and significant percentage clear on top of the ladder and looking to complete a premiership hat-trick before the pandemic intervened for a second straight year.

Maiorana will take the reins for a sixth year after arriving at JE Moore Park in 2017.

Roosters president Luciano Condurso was relieved to get his signature.

“I think we all felt the same, the way the season ended, I think we all wanted to come back and keep it together,” Condurso said.

“We talked for a while but deep down we always believed he was going to go again and we obviously wanted him to too, he’s a very good coach.

“We’re really happy with that, he’s eager to go. The last couple of years has left us a little shy of what we want to do.”

West Preston-Lakeside’s strong season was recognised with five players named in the Division 1 Team of the Year and Maiorana named Coach of the Year.

Ethan Penrith, Max Dreher, Jackson Clarke, Ahmed Saad and Michael Ercolano were all named in the season’s best 22.

Saad finished third in the Rosbrook Medal and fourth in the Coaches’ MVP, while Penrith was fourth in the league best-and-fairest and Ercolano fifth in the MVP.

The Roosters have been a tight-knit group since Maiorana’s arrival.

The premiership group has largely stuck together for the past four years but there have been a couple of key departures this off-season.

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Star defender Clarke has returned to his hometown Wangaratta and will be joined at the Magpies by Liam McVeigh.

In better news premiership co-captains Saad and Nathan Valladares, Joel McDonald and ruckman Matt Harmon have re-committed.

Off the field, Steve Krstevski will coach the Roosters’ reserves, ex-AFL player and club great Paul Tilley will coach the women’s and Alex Stoikos will lead the under-19s.

The club will hold its senior presentation night on Friday, October 29 and Condurso expected the club would look to return to pre-season training in mid-November.