Big Mal might change Heywood's losing tune

By Jared Lynch
Updated November 7 2012 - 3:03pm, first published December 14 2009 - 11:30am
Heywood Football Netball Club, senior coach Brad Sinclair happy with the signing of AFL player Mal Michael to the club as a player. 091214DW02 Picture: DAMIAN WHITE
Heywood Football Netball Club, senior coach Brad Sinclair happy with the signing of AFL player Mal Michael to the club as a player. 091214DW02 Picture: DAMIAN WHITE
Big Mal might change Heywood's losing tune
Big Mal might change Heywood's losing tune

THERE'S a buzz about Heywood and it's not because Santa is coming.The town's football club looks set to break its two-and-half-year drought in the Western Border league. Triple Brisbane Lions premiership player Mal Michael was yesterday unveiled as the club's latest recruit.Michael, 32, retired his 238 game AFL career last year and said he was looking forward to helping the Heywood Lions roar like his former Queensland club.He laughed off suggestions his appointment made him more popular than Santa among townsfolk."I just hope I can deliver like the man in red," Michael said."The club I played with last season won its first premiership in 50 years. The fellas worked hard and were so desperate for success."I don't want to get people's hopes up but a similar thing could happen to Heywood."Heywood has failed to win a match since 2007.The Lions' new coach Brad Sinclair lured the former AFL star to the south-west. Sinclair coached Michael in his first season outside the AFL at Nilma Darnum in Gippsland's Ellinbank and District Football League.Michael admitted he probably wouldn't have come to Heywood if it weren't for Sinclair."Brad has come through the AFL system as well and he has the attitude that you leave a club in a better shape than when you came to it. That's something we both want for Heywood."It's a challenge and makes it (football) more exciting."He believed the Lions needed little work to generate success after he viewed the club's 2009 performance summary.They weren't blown out of the water in any of their games," he said."All it may take is just some tweaking and adjustment to have a chance at winning and maybe sneaking into the finals. I'm a believer of structure. A bad game plan can even win a game, just so long as everyone is following it."Michael, whose AFL career spanned three clubs - Brisbane, Collingwood and Essendon - will commute from Melbourne to Heywood for matches. He was unsure when he'd begin training.His recruitment has renewed interest in the club among past and present players. Sinclair, who began training on November 18, said the Lions had lost several good players in past years and was confident they would return."We are not out to buy anything, bring in a dozen or 15 new players. We want to get locals back and rebuild bridges," he said.Lions chief executive officer Shane Evans described Sinclair and Michael's appointment as a "warm feeling"."There is a terrific feeling around the club at the moment. There is certainly excitement and everyone is enthusiastic," he said yesterday.

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