WRFL: Sunshine Heights lock in Damien Farnfield as coach for 2021
WRFL Division 3 outfit Sunshine Heights has decided who will lead it in 2021 as president Vince Sposato addresses the club’s recruiting plans.
Local Footy
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Sunshine Heights has reappointed coach Damien Farnfield for next season as it looks to build on a positive 2019 campaign.
Farnfield took over the top job at the Western Region Football League Division 3 outfit in 2018, with the club finishing fifth in his first season at the helm before contesting finals last year.
Dragons president Vince Sposato said the club was thrilled Farnfield had extended his tenure.
“I’m a big believer in long-term coaches,” Sposato said.
“Myself and the club are delighted to have him.
“He’s not just a coach – he’s a hard worker off the field. That’s the beauty of Damo, he’s just a hard worker. He’s the type of bloke where you just let him go and he does his job.
Farnfield had been weighing up his future in recent months because of family commitments.
“Damo has just started a family with his partner. It was touch and go,” Sposato said.
“He was umming and ahhing, but through a couple of talks I had with him he was pretty keen to go again next year.
“In the end, he decided to give it another shot.”
Sunshine Heights finished the home-and-away rounds in second spot with a 14-4 win-loss record in 2019.
But it went down to Albanvale in the major semi-final before being outclassed by eventual premier Glen Orden in the preliminary final.
Sposato said the Dragons were hopeful they could go “a couple of steps further” next season as they look to bolster their list.
He said they wanted to boost their key position stocks and were chasing a full-forward, ruckman and key defenders.
“We’re not too far away,” Sposato said.
“We’ve got a pretty young group and they’re developing and maturing.
“I think next year, with the right recruits and Damo has been working hard on recruiting, finals are on the agenda again.”
Sposato said most of Sunshine Heights’ existing players were set to stay put.
Five Dragons – Jeremy Angelowitsch, Justin Zahra, Matthew Gauci, Mathew Serafin and Steven Walters-Kepada – were named in the 2019 Division 3 Team of the Year, underlining the talent in the senior squad.
“There could be one or two who might be leaving, but I think the core group is staying together,” Sposato said.
“They’re a pretty close-knit unit, so I think we haven’t lost too many.”
Sunshine Heights will also celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2021 and Sposato said there would be more announcements in coming months about what will be a significant year for the club.
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