East Wagga-Kooringal coach Gavin McMahon has dropped a late-season bombshell, declaring he won’t be continuing into a fifth year as coach.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
McMahon etched his place in Gumly history last year when he led the Hawks to a drought-breaking premiership against Coleambally.
But, after taking into account family and work commitments, McMahon decided the moment was right to call time on his coaching stint.
“I decided during the week that that was enough for me,” McMahon said.
“It’s tough, because you love what you do, you love the boys and you love coaching. But on the flip side, it’s also not tough because the last thing you want to do when you put in a body of work is to stay on too long.”
EWK president Steve Absolum said they’ll begin the process of searching for a successor immediately.
“Gav’s done an exceptional job with the playing group,” Absolum said.
“We’ve still got a footy season in progress, so we won’t show any disrespect to Gav or drift away from that but we’re seeking expressions of interest and we’ll sit down with senior guys around the club and ascertain what sort of coach we’re after.”
Absolum said they’ll consider all options to find the right person, from playing to non-playing and experienced coaches to rookies.
But the priority remains this season including giving the departing coach a deserving send-off.
“He’ll be hard to replace,” Absolum said. “He’s done three extremely good years there, he won one flag and was unlucky not to win another. He created a legacy there and I’m hoping the players will lift and go as hard and as fast as they can this season.”
The Hawks have made three grand finals under McMahon and, while they’re yet to lock in their finals spot, it would take a brave pundit to rule them out of a fourth straight appearance just yet.
He’s certainly hoping his stint extends out to seven more games, which would include four finals.
“We’ve still got a fair way to go this year but we’re pretty focussed on finishing off the year as best we can anyway,” McMahon said.
He does, however, reject the suggestion they have a premiership to defend.
“We don’t defend it because there’s no chance anyone can take it off you,” he said. “We’re reigning premiers but we earned that last year and no-one can take that away. We just front up the next year like everyone else and try to win another.”
Regardless of how the year pans out, McMahon says the job vacancy at Gumly is an appealing one.
“It’s going to be a pretty amazing opportunity for someone,” he said. “When you look at the state of the club, the facilities, the stable committee, the finances, it’s in good shape.”
McMahon couldn’t be prouder of what his players achieved last year, particularly in picking themselves up after the two grand final losses.
And while the passion to coach remains, he didn’t want to run the risk of letting them down.
“It’s just the right time for me to go, personally,” he said. “My interest and my passion for coaching, the club, the boys, it’s still there. It’s just the practicalities of coaching and making sure you’ve got a respectful amount of time and energy to put in, to match the boys…
“They’re a good bunch. They’ve worked their bum off for the last few years.
“Even last year with the grand final, the greatest moment of winning the flag was sitting on the bar stool at Gumly Hall and watching the boys enjoy themselves.”