FOOTBALL – LIAM DURKIN
ONCE a coach, always a coach.
Former Woodside District Football-Netball Club senior football coach Michael Duncan will coach Warragul Industrials FNC this season.
Duncan shocked the local football world when he was announced as Dusties new coach recently.
The two-time Morwell premiership player had previously indicated a desire to step away from senior coaching, following six years in the North Gippsland Football-Netball League.
However, in a dramatic turn of events, Warragul Industrials found themselves without a coach, and Duncan was sounded out.
Dusties had appointed former Traralgon player Mark Collison to the top job, yet a change in his work situation meant he was no longer able to commit.
The Duncan connection came about through Dusties last coach Harmit Singh, who coached Duncan at Morwell.
The pair shared premiership success in the Gippsland League in 2013 and 2014.
Singh was also on the bench helping Duncan during last year’s NGFNL Grand Final.
It is understood Duncan was one of at least three candidates Dusties were keen to talk to following Collison’s departure, while some Woodside players are believed to be surprised at what has happened.
Duncan will take over a Dusties side that bowed out in the semi-final last year in the West Gippsland Football-Netball Competition.
The man known as ‘Chunky’ has built up a body of work in his short coaching career to date.
He coached Traralgon Tyers United for two years (2018-19), finishing top three in both, before taking Woodside to the minor premiership in 2021, a preliminary final the following year, and then their first Grand Final as Woodside District.
Dusties received praise for their work in quickly finding a replacement coach, as well as credit from those in media circles for managing to keep Duncan’s appointment totally in-house.
While rumours in local football tend to spread like wildfire, this was a rare occurrence where absolutely nothing was leaked.
