Twenty years after their last premiership, Marrar have turned to a man who has coached teams to four Farrer League flags and three Riverina Leagues titles in that time, signing Shane Lenon for the next two seasons.
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After two years at Hume League club Lockhart, Lenon returns to the Farrer League for the first time since 2010, when he led Collingullie-Ashmont-Kapooka to a second straight grand final win over Marrar, before the Demons switched to the Riverina League.
It signals a new era for the mentor whose coaching career has previously been contained within the triangle of Lockart, Collingullie and Ganmain.
“I’m looking forward to it, it’s a new chapter and a new challenge and I can’t wait,” Lenon said.
He said a small community with a passion for football and netball appealed, as well as the club’s focus on youth.
“The fact that they’ve got their 17s up and firing (minor premiers this season) and also that they’ve created a pathway with the Wagga Swans into the club, that’s a huge positive,” he said.
Lenon signed with the club on Wednesday night and replaces the departing Matt Molkentin who led the Bombers back to finals and bowed out after a spirited performance against the Northern Jets.
“You’ve got to give big Molky a wrap, he’s done a really good job and something he can proud of and it’s up to myself and the rest of the club to improve on the job that he’s done,” Lenon said.
Lenon’s two-year commitment will ensure he’s part of the club’s 100-year celebrations in 2018, which was another appealing factor. But he isn’t about to start fanning the flames of expectation.
“I suppose they’ve been starved a little bit for success but you can’t look too far ahead. You’ve just got to work hard and if you do everything right and you’ve got a side that’s good enough, well, you give yourself every opportunity.
“But gee, there’s a lot of hard work and things that have got to fall into place before you can start talking about that sort of stuff.”
Lenon said retaining Marrar’s current players is his first priority in the job.