SOCCER
JASON Grieve was offered two State 4 coaching jobs in 24 hours last week and not long after was unveiled as the new head coach of Frankston Pines. Grieve was interviewed for the Pines job the night before Baxter offered him its senior role. The 53-year-old was in demand after a five-year stint at Mentone during which he took the club into State 4 and consolidated its status. “I guess Baxter for me was the right job at the wrong time,” he said.
“Pines was more of an opportunity to shape the whole club – it’s a much bigger role than just the senior men’s coach. “It involves rebuilding the club and re-connecting with the local community because that connection seems to have been lost along the way.”
Grieve’s communication and organisational skills will be put to the test by the task confronting him but he has form in those areas. He is business manager at Gallagher Australia, an insurance brokerage, risk management and consulting firm. And he’s not easily daunted. Grieve shares that trait with many others who grew up in Glasgow’s Castlemilk district. He was with Scottish giant Rangers until the age of 16 when his hopes of a professional playing career were dashed by the onset of glandular fever. He came to Australia 12 years ago and holds a senior coaching badge. He’s married with two sons, one of whom joined Western United’s Academy program from Bulleen Lions early last year.
For Grieve it’s been a rocky start to his tenure at Monterey Reserve. When word got out that he was in the frame for the Pines job he received text messages outlining reasons why he should not accept the role. “I was pretty disappointed with some of the messages even though they were well intentioned,” he said. It didn’t take long for Grieve to learn the extent of the schism between Pines and its players that had festered last season when the senior side suffered a second straight relegation.
It widened with Donn Delaney’s sudden about-face last month that left Pines without a senior coach. “I was disappointed by the lack of advocacy on behalf of the club when it came to contacting the players. “I sent personalised messages to 30 players and only a handful bothered to reply.” Grieve then put together a thorough player recruitment plan which the new committee approved. “I suggested a partnership with Chisholm for physio students to provide matchday and injury support as players’ welfare is a priority. “I’m looking for players who want to play for the badge and aren’t coming to Pines for financial reward. “The facilities here are unbelievable in fact I think they are the best on the peninsula. “I want players to know that and know what benefits are available when they come to Pines.”
Grieve’s assistant is Bill Stanton who worked with him at Mentone. Stanton is a former Aston Villa player whose main task will be to provide support for players on an individual basis. “There are two stages to what has to be done here – first we have to fix it then we have to build it,” Grieve added. “The first task is to get a group of players together then build them up and get the most out of them. “Right now I’m targeting the first round of the season in late March.
“I’m happy to compete in the Australia Cup and use that as part of pre-season. “Our first session is on January 9 so we’ll have three sessions before the Wallace Cup and I’m really looking forward to that event because I’ve never been involved with it before. “Right now we don’t have a playing squad of any note but that will change. “I want to assemble a squad mainly of under-23s with a selection of really experienced heads to help and to be as competitive as we possibly can.”
In other State 4 news Baxter isn’t rushing to fill the senior coaching vacancy left by Hayden Taylor’s recent departure. “We most likely won’t make an appointment till the new year now,” club president Bray Hodgkinson said.
Delaney and Billy Armour are doing the rounds of the rumour mill. So is George Campbell who is in South Melbourne’s Hall of Fame and is a life member of Football Victoria. His close ties with George Hughes and the eagerness of some at Baxter to lure him have fed talk linking him with the club.
In State 1 news the multi-million dollar upgrade of Dallas Brooks Reserve will shortly move into the second of three stages with work expected to start early next year. Mornington is a co-tenant at the venue with Beleura Junior Sports Club. Stage 2 centres on the soccer pitches and council expects to appoint a contractor shortly. “There will be four new pitches fully floodlit with 200 lux lights on the main pitch and 100 lux on the other three pitches,” Mornington head coach Adam Jamieson said. “All the pitches will be fully drained and two of them fenced off.”
State Member for Mornington Chris Crewther was hopeful that funding would be approved for the pavilion upgrade of the club’s 50-year-old facilities. Mornington is yet to find an alternative venue for next season.
Meanwhile Somerville Eagles captain Conor Mcfall is wrestling with one of the toughest decisions of his career.
He’s back at his old haunt training at North Seaford Reserve and his signature would be a major coup for Seaford United boss Paul “Toffee” Williams. But before Seaford fans get too carried away Mcfall will line up for Somerville against Seaford in their upcoming friendly. “At this stage I’m very 50/50 about it all,” he said. He’ll likely choose next season’s destination in January. “I’ve always wanted to go back to Seaford because I love the club but Sommie’s been amazing and all my good close mates are there and I’ve very close with (senior coach) Mark Larner. “But there’s always been a feeling of wanting to go back to where I grew up. “I do have good mates at Seaford and love ‘Keano’ (Steve Keenan) and ‘Toffee’. “My wife also plays at Seaford so it would be nice to go back there.”
Mcfall’s been impressed with Seaford off the pitch and this adds to the attraction of his former club.
“It’s been amazing seeing Karyn (Pert) and her committee bring the culture and vibe back to what it used to be and I’m there every Sunday watching my wife play and spending time with the Seaford boys. “Right now I need to get a feel for each squad and who goes where. “I want to win the league and a squad’s attitude and commitment are big factors for me. “But yeah it’s a flip of the coin right now and every few days my mind changes. “It will be extremely hard to leave Somerville but Seaford is where I grew up and I feel like I have a point to prove. “I’ve been able to help Somerville grow from a relegation team that trained one night a week to a very competitive State 4 team and I finished this year as best and fairest so I feel like I’ve hit all my goals there.”
Somerville’s attacking talisman Marcus Anastasiou is training with Skye United and should both star players leave the Eagles it would be a huge bodyblow. But coach Larner refuses to intervene. “Both players have been completely up front and honest with me,” Larner said. “First and foremost I see them as friends not just footballers so I want them to make the right decision for themselves completely free of any pressure from me. “If they end up playing for ‘Somie’ it’s a win-win for everyone but if they end up playing for somebody else I’ll be the first to call them on a Saturday afternoon to see how they went.”
In other news Langwarrin, Skye United and Chelsea were all involved in pre-season hit-outs recently.
Chelsea hosted Langwarrin’s under-23s on Thursday night going down 3-0 with Langy’s goals coming from Jeremiah Achieve, Cain Vickery and Ali Forqani. On Saturday Langwarrin’s under-19s, 23s and seniors took on Dandenong Thunder at George Andrews Reserve. The under-19s won 2-1 with goals from Marco Papettas and Oscar Johnstone, the under-23s won 6-2 with goals from Jed Hagenaars (2), Lirim Asani, Cain Vickery, Jeremiah Achieve and Mustafa Suliman and the seniors went down 4-0. “Dandy Thunder were very good,” Langwarrin head coach Jamie Skelly said. “They capitalised on any mistakes we made and were very quick and clinical in attack.”
On Sunday Skye lost 3-1 to Mazenod at Carrum Downs Recreation Reserve with Elliott Craig scoring for Skye.
This week’s friendlies:
Tuesday, 7pm & 8.30pm
Skye Utd v Endeavour Hills Fire, Carrum Downs Recreation Reserve
Thursday, 7.30pm
Skye Utd v Kingston City U23s, Carrum Downs Recreation Reserve
Saturday, 12 noon
Seaford Utd v Somerville Eagles, North Seaford Reserve
First published in the Frankston Times – 17 December 2024
