Brunswick Zebras welcomes the return of Malcolm Neil to the club to take up the role of coach of the Under 14 Girls team.

 Malcolm was previously at the club as a girls team coach for six years, coaching teams from Under 12 to Under 15.  Highlights from that period included a runners-up season in the Under 14 Girls.  But just as importantly to Malcolm each year the vast majority of girls came back and he had the pleasure of watching girls develop as players and acquire a lasting love of the  game.

Malcolm’s playing philosophy for the Under 14 Girls this year is for the girls to compete hard and play for each other. 

Malcolm has a wide array of links with the game.  He enjoyed a career as a goalkeeper for several clubs including Colts United up in Bendigo where he hails from originally to through Melbourne University Soccer Club plus 10 years of indoor soccer at venues around Melbourne. He also has links to Scottish football through his family and his 10 pound membership of the supporters trust which owns 46% of East Stirlingshire FC, the club whose claim to fame is that it is where Sir Alex Ferguson started his coaching career. 

Malcolm is a Melbourne Victory supporter, particularly of the women’s team whose matches he goes to regularly.  His favourite MV player is Caitlyn Friend whom he coached as a youngster.  As far as the EPL goes his affection for Crystal Palace arises from two sources – his grandmother lived in Croydon in London near Palace’s ground and as a young lad Malcolm was impressed by Vince Hilaire, one of the first black players in professional football in the late 1970s – Vince Hilaire with the amazing hair, the wizard of the wing. 

Meanwhile back in real life Malcolm works in digital publishing and is the dad of two daughters (who played at Zebras in their teenage years) and a three-year old son who might well be seen on the sidelines this season barracking for the Mighty Zebras.