Melbourne coach Paul Roos begins handover to Simon Goodwin by taking step back

MELBOURNE coach Paul Roos says the transition to coach-in-waiting Simon Goodwin is becoming clearer as he prepares to take a step back from the intricacies of coaching in 2016.

Melbourne training a Goschs Paddock. Coach Paul Roos and assistant Simon Goodwin . Pic: Michael Klein

MELBOURNE coach Paul Roos will be switching on his out of office alert in 2016.

Roos, who is preparing to hand over the reins to Simon Goodwin at the end of next season, said the transition model — first addressed a month before this season ended — is becoming clearer.

He is planning on spending more time with the club’s medical and fitness departments and making personal connections with staff rather than being stuck within his own four walls, leaving much of the intricacies to Goodwin and his colleagues.

“It’s something that when the season gets underway, we tend to forget about and we get into our offices,” he told the club website.

“With the setup we’ve got, I think it’s important to get out of my office and get among the staff and get among the players and talk about what we want to achieve as a footy club.”

Roos also said that a greater focus will be on the Leading Teams model to “drive standards and behaviours” not just for the playing group, but the entire club staff.

Goodwin will be responsible for the club’s training sessions in 2016 and some elements of game style, while Roos said making sure players are prepared for AFL football via VFL outfit Casey will continue to be vital with senior development coach Daniel McPherson tasked with VFL game style.

“(His) role now becomes critical,” Roos said.

“It’s a role that exists at other clubs and we haven’t had it here before. It’s almost a one-stop shop, where I can say ‘Frosty (McPherson), we need to work more on this’, so that’s a really, really important role. We’ve also seen this year how we’ve improved at Casey and the guys coming in were a lot better prepared.”

Originally published as Melbourne coach Paul Roos begins handover to Simon Goodwin by taking step back