Palmerston Magpies part ways with NTFL Premier League coach Josh Heath

A NTFL club has confirmed it will part ways with their Premier League coach midway through the 2023-24 NTFL season. Read the latest.

The Palmerston Magpies have parted ways with coach Josh Heath midway through the 2023-24 NTFL season.

The Magpies sit at the bottom of the Premier League table after 12 rounds of competition, without a win to their name, including a 200+ loss to top side St Mary’s earlier in the season.

Positive results followed Heath in his first two seasons at the club with the likes of Eddie Betts, Gary Ablett Jr and Neville Jetta playing for the club.

The momentum made it appear as if the side would push for finals in coming seasons, but the lack of returning names left the side floundering at the bottom of the table.

The club has confirmed they will not extend Heath’s contract for the 2024-25 season.

Magpies President Carmine Rauseo said the club was thankful for the role Heath had played in the club’s rebuild, however they could no longer ignore results.

“Josh took on the role at a time when the Club desperately needed to rebuild and he has been a hugely important part of that process both on and off the field,” Rauseo said.

“It is fair to say that we expected that 2023-24 would see improvement on the field from the important building blocks laid down in Josh’s first two seasons.

Palmerston has decided to part ways with coach Josh Heath. Picture: Patch Clapp / AFLNT Media

“Playing finals was never assured but it was definitely seen as a key driver of our rebuilding effort across the club.

“It is never the case that the club’s performance is just due to one factor or one person but the harsh reality is that building a winning culture in the football team is an essential requirement for every coach.

“We are enormously grateful to Josh, however we feel that as a club we have reached a point where the on field performance at premier league level is impacting on our plans for continued growth.”

Heath thanked the club for the opportunity to take on the head role, calling it a challenging and rewarding time.

“I want to especially thank the coaches, players and people who have supported me on my journey in driving change, as we know this is not always easy,” he said.

“I’m proud of the changes that I have been involved with, both on and off the field and value the experiences and relationships that I have made along the way.

“I am disappointed that I will not be able to continue the development pathway that I set out to achieve with the young playing group, but I look forward to seeing the growth of them in the future.

“Although this season has not seen the results that I had hoped to achieve, I do believe that with hard work there are good things to come.”