WARRNAMBOOL and District league battler Nirranda has turned to the past to start rebuilding its future.
The club yesterday announced former Warrnambool and Port Fairy ruckman Mark Inia - who last played for the Blues as a junior in 1992 - and another prodigal son in Paul Ryan as co-coaches for 2009.
Club president Craig Gillin said the return of three-time Hampden league premiership player Inia fulfilled a promise the big man made to his old club 16 years ago. "He always said he'd come back to Nirranda to finish his playing days. We'd sort of been chasing Mark for the past three or four years and we're delighted he's proved as good as his word," Gillin said.
"You don't get too many interleague ruckman and Hampden premiership players coming to a club like ours."
Nirranda coach for the past three seasons, Adam Mason, will stay on as a player.
Inia, 33, said he switched to Warrnambool from Nirranda as a 17-year-old, just in time for the Hampden league Blues' premiership.
Two more flags and 153 games with Warrnambool followed, but his engagement and later marriage to a Port Fairy girl, Jess, saw him switch to the Seagulls for the past six seasons.
"I played my 250th Hampden league game last season and got my life membership - that's what really kept me going," Inia said.
"But it had always been a dream of mine to go back (to Nirranda). Mum and Dad still live at Nullawarre, I've still got lots of friends there and I've always kept in touch with how the team was going."
Inia said a co-coaching role with Ryan would help share the workload, given that he would continue to live and work in Port Fairy and now had two children. Ryan, 29, is something of a football journeyman.
He started with Old Collegians, played for Merimbula and the Noosa Tigers before a stint at Merrivale and was assistant coach at Nirranda three years ago. He then enjoyed a long working holiday in Ireland before returning to play the last few games for Nirranda last season.
The rover said he was looking forward to lifting Nirranda up the ladder - always with a premiership as the ultimate target.
"I've played in quite a few places but I've never won a flag," the Midfield Meat worker said.
"I only met Mark for the first time tonight but I think we can really work well together for the club."
Last Modified on 28/12/2008 20:25