Dear Members and supporters,

Today we announced that our AFL Senior Coach Simon Goodwin has agreed to a new deal which will see him remain at the club until at least the end of 2024.

This is fantastic news and ensuring Simon was locked in beyond this year was a key decision for not only our football program, but our entire club.

Both myself and the Board are continually impressed by Simon’s ability to form strong connections with players, coaches and staff. His football brain is exceptional, but of equal importance is his ability to drive standards and foster a culture of high performance within our football department.

I know our players, coaches and staff are thrilled to have Simon recommit to the club and I know you, our members and supporters, share this same excitement.

History has shown that for teams striving to achieve a sustained period of on-field excellence stability and consistency are critical. As we enter an exciting window for our football club, it was crucial to secure Simon as our senior coach and set our club to capitalise on the opportunities that present themselves over the coming seasons.

Already this season we have faced our fair share of adversity and disruption, with Covid-19 continuing to impact the competition. However, under the leadership of Simon, our football department has been able to navigate every challenge thrown our way and we couldn’t sit in a better position after the first seven rounds. This is testament to the culture of our football department, which under the leadership of Simon and Alan Richardson, continues to go from strength to strength.

Simon joined our club in 2014 and stepped into the senior coaching role in 2017. Over this time, he has grown significantly as both a coach and a leader. He has had to steer the ship through some pretty tough times and not once has he wavered in his belief of our players, our program or our club. This speaks a lot to Simon’s character and the determination and focus that makes him such a great coach.

I hope you’re as excited as I am about not only today’s announcement, but the remainder of season 2022 and the future beyond that. It has been fantastic to see so many of you back in the stands over the past seven weeks and I look forward to catching up with many more of you over the remainder of the season.

Regards,
Gary Pert