Southern league: East Malvern vows to fight back after winless start to Division 1 season

A Southern league coach says untrue “gossip” that he’d been sacked has only made him and his team more determined than ever.

East Malvern coach Brent Chapman. Picture: Valeriu Campan

The footy rumour mill can be cruel.

And wildly inaccurate.

East Malvern coach Brent Chapman said he was stunned when he got wind of his supposed sacking on Saturday.

It was completely untrue, of course.

“I only heard it yesterday to be honest,” he said.

“Someone from Dingley said after the game, ‘was today your first game as coach?’

“I said, ‘ah, nah’.

“They said they’d heard during the week that I wasn’t coaching.”

Chapman is still very much coach of East Malvern.

“Feel free to squash it,” he said of the rumour, adding: “People talk, people make stuff up, that’s footy gossip for you I suppose.’’

East Malvern lost to Dingley by 64 points on Saturday, 17.15 (117) to 8.5 (53), to remain on the bottom of the SFNL Division 1 ladder and in the relegation hot seat.

Chapman, though, says his side is better than its 0-9 record indicates and the Panthers were determined to fight back in the second half of the season.

“We’re much better side than a side that hasn’t won a game,” he said.

“Hopefully we can get some reward for effort in the second half of the year. The guys are having a crack, it’s not like they’re giving in.

“There’s no disharmony among the group.

“If anything it’s probably brought the group closer together.”

Hayden Chrzanowski lays a tackle.

A Panther takes a kick.

Chapman said the positive for East Malvern was that it had blooded a raft of young players this season.

“The reserves started the year really well and we’ve got a few injuries in the seniors so it’s allowed us to bring some of those young guys up and have a crack at senior footy,” he said.

“They’re the future of the club.”

Jack Duncan was in the Panthers’ best players on Saturday in only his second game, kicking two goals as a high half forward.

Chapman said talented forward Miller Synman was “starting to learn that crumbing forward craft’’.

Tom Riley had been playing well off half back until he got injured last week. Ben Pearce has come into the club and fitted in well and been one of the Panthers’ key play makers.

“I could name heaps of them and tell you something about all of them,” Chapman said of the youngsters.

“There are plenty of positives for the future, it’s just hard when you’re not winning games.

“We’ve been hanging in there. The effort can’t be questioned.”