An exciting year lies ahead for BMW in the Northern Areas Football Association’s 2009 season.
The club took home the B-grade premiership last year and has aimed high this year, hoping to win again.
Formed in 1991, by the amalgamation of Booleroo Centre with Melrose-Wilmington, the club has become a stellar team in the association.
Senior players commenced training in February, preparing for the oncoming season.
President Phil Green said the A-grade team would have the same manpower as last year and would have to watch how the opposition shaped up during the season.
“We enjoy a good healthy competition in the Northern Areas Football Association as well as winning a premiership last year,” he said.
Green is happy with the attendance rate of players coming along to training this year.
The coach for A-grade this year is Cameron Redden from Port Augusta. He is a first time coach and originally came from the region.
Green is in his third and last year as president of BMW and said he has enjoyed the good team effort both on and off the ground.
“The general club atmosphere and support from local people is amazing,” he said.
Green also said the club had some good senior colts that would be moving up in the football ranks and we would have to see how they handle the higher grades.
B-grade coach Dean ‘Marty’ Keller won the North Adelaide area Coach of the Year in 2008.
Keller played 362 games, retiring at 43 years of age.
“You definitely see the game differently as a coach than you do as a player,” he said.
He has been coaching the BMW B-grade coach for four years with an impressive win-loss ratio of 53-19.
Keller has been reappointed to the position of BMW B grade coach and is looking forward to the 2009 season.
“I want to coach for as long as I can but the club comes first, so I’ll coach until they don’t want me.”
The best advice Keller said he could give to a young coach is to keep it simple.
“Don’t make it too hard, you end up confusing everyone,” he laughed.
“You also need to point out a few negatives but make sure you focus on the positives more.”
Keller described himself as a “reasonably calm” coach but admitted that if a “blast” was needed he would do it.
PHOTO: TEAM PRIDE...Last year’s strong B-Grade team took out the premiership. The team were Fourth row: Chris Blessing (runner), left, Lucas Hill, Dion Strike, Matt Keller, Guillaume Kruger, Kuda Gora, William Heaslip, Neville McCallum (assistant coach), and Aaron Lock. Thrid row: Sue Keller (trainer), Joe Koch, Kym Searle, Brad Elson, Myles McCallum, Matt Nottle, Jack Walter and Joy Koch (trainer. Second row: Leanne Ayles (trainer), Mark Finlay, Casey Smith, Richard McCallum, Matt Foulis, Paul Arthur, Daniel Brown, Wayne Dunkley, David Potts, Bentley Foulis (team manager), and Paul Rodgers. Front row: Trish Lehmann (trainer), left, Dion Foulis, Desi Taylor, Marty Keller (coach), Noel Arthur (captain), Paul Finlay, JP Carey, Tom Carling, Eamon Fetherstonhaugh, and Chris Butterick (trainer). Photo: Clive Palmer.
Email a friend