Beaconsfield Football Club is delighted to announce the appointment of former AFL St Kilda star, All Australian representative and Beaconsfield junior, Austinn Jones as its senior Coach for the next two seasons.Austinn’s appointment comes as a result of an extensive search for a new mentor after the retirement of Robbie Taylor, who has been at the helm for the past two years.
The club had a strong list of applicants for the role and was overwhelmed with the quality of candidates, but Austinn met all the criteria’s that it was seeking in making the appointment.
President Terry Lock, in announcing the appointment, said that Austinn had proven in a very short time as a coach, that he had the skills, knowledge, ability and vision to develop a group of footballers in to a winning team through a disciplined, team first approach. That included preseason training, weekly match training and involvement in social functions together with match-day performance.
Austinn’s two years with Narre Warren resulted in consecutive premierships, while in 2008 he coached Gippsland Power in the TAC Cup to a preliminary final.
“This is an exciting time for Beaconsfield Football Club as Austinn is a Beacy boy who went on to play 226 games at the highest level and achieve All Australian status on two occasions, said Lock.
“To come back with a burning passion to make this club successful once again is a wonderful opportunity for all involved. Aussie started at Beaconsfield in our juniors, played seniors while involved with Dandenong Stingrays, got drafted to St Kilda in 1994 and played there for 11 years.”
“Now the prodigal son returns home to where it all began as the club’s highest acclaimed AFL footballer to complete the cycle. His network and knowledge of the game is enormous and his role with ABC radio in special comments validates everything about the appointment,” he said.
Austinn’s commitments will not compromise his coaching appointment as the media work allows for flexibility and he has assured that Beaconsfield will be his first priority.
“We are all aware that this announcement is only the beginning of the hard work still in front of us, both on and off field, and we will now start adding to the structure to support Austinn’s appointment. It is now for all club people to rally as one to put the best interests of the Beaconsfield Football Club first, so stay tuned for further announcements in the weeks to come.
An information night with Austinn will be held on Tuesday 1 September at the social rooms at 7pm with discussion about committee and other support roles that the club wishes to fill next year.
Last Modified on 28/02/2010 14:08