AFL Sydney is very pleased to announce Stuart Newman and Simon Berry as the Senior Coaches of the 2015 AFL Sydney Women’s Representative side.
Both Newman and Berry have strong associations with AFL Sydney football, and are well placed to build on the significant momentum gathered during last year’s highly successful program under the guidance of Dean Connors.
2015 will see AFL Sydney take on rivals AFL Canberra in a two game series once again with the first game scheduled for Sunday 12th April in the ACT.
Newman is heading into his second season as the Macquarie University men’s 1st Grade coach having taken his side to a preliminary finals berth in 2014 in his first season (up from 8th in 2013). A former 1st Grade premiership player at the club, Newman also coached the U/15s NSW Boys CHS side at last year’s National Carnival. A Level 2 coach, Newman’s strong football knowledge and strengths as an educator position him well to have a significant impact on the representative scene and is one he is very much looking forward to.
“I am delighted to have the opportunity to coach the Women’s Representative side this year, alongside Simon Berry who has had a long involvement in the game and is highly respected,” Newman said.
“Female football is something I am really passionate about, and I’m looking forward to working with what I know will be a fantastic group of the girls in the AFL Sydney outfit.”
“With our first game a little more than a month away we’ll be looking to build on the momentum of last year, and I’m confident once again of a strong showing against AFL Canberra.”
Newman is joined by the well respected Simon Berry who himself has put together almost 200 games of senior football with the Gosford Football Club in both the Black Diamond and AFL Sydney.
Berry took the reigns of Gosford Wildcats men’s side when they entered AFL Sydney in 2012, where he had immediate success with a runners up finish which led to the sides promotion into Division Three for the following season. Boasting an honours degree in exercise and sport science with research in AFL kicking, Berry this year embarks on his second year as coach of the Gosford Wildcats Women’s side following their inaugural season on 2014 where he also was the coach of the Central Coast Academy of Sport AFL program.
Berry was an assistant coach for last year’s Women’s Representative team where he quickly established himself as a high quality coach with a real passion for female football. Continuing from 2014 into this season’s program was an important factor in his appointment and is one he is champing at the bit to get underway.
“Having coached in the AFL Sydney Women's competition for the past two seasons, and being committed to the progress of Women's Football I am very excited to take on the Head Coaching role for the 2015 Representative Program.
“With the amazing talent that will make up the squad, I am committed to ensuring the side will play an exciting and enjoyable brand of football, built on the groundwork laid during last year’s program.”
“I am looking forward to getting straight to work."
AFL Sydney Football Operations Manager Matthew Graham is delighted to welcome Newman and Berry as co-coaches into this key role.
“I am extremely pleased with the appointments of Stuart and Simon who were both excellent candidates with strong coaching records,” Graham said.
“Importantly, their appointments bring continuity from the 2014 program which was a huge success and we are well positioned to build on the strong foundation created last year.”
“Both coaches are well known in the Sydney football community and their experience is a real positive for the program.”
To round out the exceptional team of coaches, back-to-back Women’s Division One Sydney University premiership coach Yucel Celenk and Southern Power Women’s coach Abraham Caroca join Berry and Newman as assistant coaches. Both assistant coaches bring a wealth of coaching knowledge to the table and will ensure AFL Sydney are a formidable force in 2015.
As Game 1 of the series will be played prior to the first round of the women’s AFL Sydney season, any women’s AFL Sydney player interested is invited to nominate for the squad by going to the following link https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/LPJVY6V and also attend the first training session from 8am at Mahoney Park on Sunday 15th March from where the coaches and selection panel will put the group through their paces and then face the difficult task of narrowing the group down to a squad of 40. This squad will then continue to train weekly leading into the first game where a team of 24 will be selected to travel to Canberra for the first match.
Full program details will be released to clubs in the coming week.
Last Modified on 06/03/2015 13:12
