MATT Lenehan will use his first pre-season as Deakin University senior football coach to lay the foundation for a sustainable future.
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The Sharks have put faith in Lenehan to lead the Warrnambool and District league side for the next two seasons.
The appointment comes after a turbulent 2014, which started with Trent Anderson in charge but finished with Lenehan in a caretaker role.
His efforts during the last month of the season convinced club officials the father-of-four was the right man to coach the side going forward.
Lenehan said he wanted the Sharks to strengthen their ties with the Mortlake community, as well as recruit more Warrnambool-based players for 2015.
The recruiting philosophy is a bid to ease the reliance on their student base and build a list which will remain competitive the longer the season drags on.
“We’re not going out to recruit blokes for different positions,” Lenehan said yesterday. “We’re going out to recruit blokes who we feel will help the club move forward, not just this season but next season as well.”
Lenehan, 29, joined Deakin University as an assistant coach last season after stints with Tyrendarra, South Rovers and Allansford, where he played juniors.
The role and the chance to work alongside reserves mentor Robin Bayne, who Lenehan has known for years, factored in his decision.
He had an impact in the midfield and across half-back before struck down by injury, condemning him to miss three of the last four matches.
But the chance to coach after the club parted ways with Anderson made him realise he had a passion for the job.
“I would’ve liked to have got a win on the board but we didn’t have the draw we were hoping for towards the end of the year,” he said.
“The games we had in the middle of the year, where we could’ve won a few in a row, we had blokes going on holidays. We didn’t have our full-strength side in.”
Lenehan said he wanted the Sharks to enjoy their football during his tenure. He said a lack of enjoyment was prevalent during their 0-8 run to end the season.
“Don’t get me wrong, you go out to win as many games as you can. You still want to win games of footy.
“But on the other side, you’ve got to look at it going forward for the club.
“It’s more about keeping the uni students around the club and keeping them happy.
“They’re playing their best footy when they’re enjoying it.
“That’s the first aim, make sure everyone enjoys their footy.”
As part of that objective, Lenehan said he wanted to be a coach who the players could talk to and who would take on board feedback, both positive and negative.
“If we get that feedback and the players feel confident enough to speak to me, it’s a bonus,” he said.
“A dictatorial coach won’t work with the Sharks.”