St Kilda’s newest coach Jimmy Allan, who ‘jumped four rungs overnight’ from VFL club Werribee

Jimmy Allan wasn’t looking for AFL jobs. But then St Kilda came calling. This is the story of his incredible rise from the SANFL to Moorabbin via the VFL’s ultimate production line Werribee.

Jimmy Allan was not looking for an AFL coaching role.

When the offer came two weeks ago, the 2024 Werribee premiership mentor was unmoved.

St Kilda senior assistant Corey Enright called, asking if he was interested in joining the Saints as their backline coach.

Initially, he told his former Geelong teammate he would have a think about it.

“I’ve never chased an AFL job, at all,’’ Allan said.

“I know there are plenty of guys in my sort of role who use it as a stepping stone to get into the AFL. That wasn’t the case for me.’’

Allan had been with the Bees for two years after returning to Victoria from Adelaide, where he won three Magarey Medals and, this year, was elevated to the SANFL hall-of-fame.

“I was really happy with what I was doing at Werribee,’’ he said.

But he gave the St Kilda approach some thought, wondering if an offer like it would come up again.

“I also knew I couldn’t keep doing what I was doing forever,’’ he said.

He called Enright two days later and said he would be happy to talk.

The following day he spoke to Saints coach Ross Lyon on the phone for 30 minutes.

Allan and his family also headed Lorne to visit one of his best mates.

By the drive home, he had “started coming around to the idea pretty strongly’’.

On Wednesday of last week, he told long-serving Werribee CEO Mark Penaluna and football manager Kyle Hartigan about an offer that Bees president Martin Carter is calling the “opportunity of a lifetime’’.

Penaluna wasn’t convinced he should take it.

He tossed up a few reasons why Allan should stay, but eventually agreed it was a great progression for him and the club would support his decision.

By the time he met Carter last Friday, he had pretty much made up his mind to go.

Penaluna must be getting sick of AFL clubs pinching his coaches: his past three — Mark “Choco’’ Williams, Michael Barlow and now Allan — have gone directly from Chirnside Park to the AFL.

But as Carter said when he received life membership of the VFL in September, Werribee “is about developing people’’.

James Allan kisses his wife after Werribee’s Grand Final win in 2024. Picture: Michael Klein

“’Pena’s’ (Penaluna) support for me has been unbelievable,’’ Allan said.

“Apart from his family, he loves that footy club more than anything. As soon as they appoint a coach, I’m sure he’ll be at ease.’’

Allan had another tough call to make – to Werribee great Dom Brew, whom he coached to a spectacularly successful 2024 season.

He reassured Brew that the club was strong enough to absorb his departure.

Allan compared it to two years earlier, when the Bees, grand finalists in 2023, shed a lot of senior players and all their coaches, and were widely tipped to go the way of Humpty Dumpty and have a great fall.

Instead, Allan, in his first year as a senior coach, took them to the premiership, their first in 31 years, and was named VFL coach of the year. Brew won the JJ Liston Trophy, the Coaches’ MVP and the club best and fairest.

Werribee coach Jimmy Allan with Dom Brew after the club’s Grand Final triumph in 2024.

Werribee coach Jimmy Allan at the huddle.

The grand final team also produced five draftees: Riley Bice, Aidan Johnson, Jack Henderson, Flynn Young and Zac Banch (little wonder Carter has taken to calling his club a “football development factory’’).

Werribee felt the loss of such accomplished players this year, slipping to 16th with seven wins and 11 losses.

The president is saying his club is now in the process of a “recharge, reset and rebound’’.

Allan told the players last Wednesday night that the Bees were in “great shape’’ – they had recruited well for next year, all the assistant coaches were sticking around, Hartigan was doing an outstanding job and there was stability.

He believes the Werribee position “is such an attractive job for anyone who wants to coach at this level’’.

A message for the Werribee Football Club community from our departing coach Jimmy Allan, as he is set to join St Kilda as an assistant coach for the 2026 AFL season.

🔗 Read more: https://t.co/PioST7PNpGpic.twitter.com/JkDURgt8sT

— Werribee FC (@WerribeeFC) November 13, 2025

Some serious experience headed our way 🙌

We’re pleased to confirm the appointment of VFL premiership coach Jimmy Allan to our coaching panel for 2026.

READ 📝: https://t.co/0NdlgwFWa7pic.twitter.com/EZtCIPXL6U

— St Kilda FC (@stkildafc) November 12, 2025

“It’s a great club, which made the decision to leave hard,’’ he said.

Allan had coached only one season of senior football – in the South Australian amateurs – when Werribee appointed him.

Was it gamble?

No, Carter said.

Allan was a past Werribee player – the one-time Geelong rookie played with the Bees before going to the SANFL – and “we knew the quality of the person’’.

“I’m not going to name names, but we had very highly ranked people come to us and say, ‘He’s the man for the job’,’’ he said.

Dom Brew, Nick Coughlan and Jimmy Allan of the Tigers celebrate after winning the 2024 VFL Grand Final.

Allan celebrates with his son Teddy.

“He had all the credentials … three Magarey Medals, a premiership, assistant coach, the school (Rostrevor College in Adelaide, where he combined teaching with a director-of-football role) … he was a lay-down misere. Did we know he would win a premiership in his first year? No one could have known.’’

Triple Sandringham premiership coach Mark “Wilbur’’ Williams was involved in the appointment of Allan and also served as his sounding board for two years.

Williams saw a young coach who was an “absolute sponge’’ and noted his learning curve had been “so consistent’’.

A premiership coach in his first season at the helm 🫡@WerribeeFC coach Jimmy Allan gives an insight into what it means to deliver the club's first premiership since 1993. pic.twitter.com/kZALe4R7Qi

— VFL / VFLW (@VFL) September 26, 2024

“He uses everything he gathers and puts it in his repertoire,’’ he said.

“He’s a very strong leader, very astute with his decision-making and he knows how he wants his team to play and team together. All his measures are important. He’s tuned in to the way he wants the game played and that will translate very well to being a backline coach, because you’ve got to be solid with your structure and good in defence and you’ve got to be able to turn defence into offence and be a springboard. In the VFL he could close a game down if he needed to or he could light them up in offence.’’

Carter said Allan was a “wonderful educator’’.

James Allan playing for Werribee against Geelong.

“He doesn’t really coach with the passion of some other coaches in terms of playing for the jumper and everything. He’s a great teacher,’’ Carter said.

“He teaches, ‘Do the one percenters, do everything right, please listen to your coaches and please understand we are a club on continuous improvement in everything we do’.’’

In Carter’s view, St Kilda has shown its high regard of Allan by hiring him as a line coach.

“In my speak, he’s jumped four rungs on the ladder overnight … who can knock that back?’’ he said.

“He’s not going into a development role. He’s come on as an assistant coach overnight. Michael Barlow, for example, went on (to North Melbourne) as a development coach. They have to go through the ranks, even if they’ve played a lot of games in the AFL. But the Saints have said, ‘Here’s your contract, you’re going to do a super job looking after the backline’.’’

Carter said St Kilda’s approach to Allan was a “whirlwind courting’’ and presented a “great opportunity for Jimmy to make that paradigm shift and be recognised as a future senior coach in everyone’s eyes’’.

Originally published as St Kilda’s newest coach Jimmy Allan, who ‘jumped four rungs overnight’ from VFL club Werribee