WAGGA Tigers skipper Lahn Shepherd has conceded it took time to come to terms with the fact Troy Maiden won't be at the helm next year, but says his stint has put the club in good stead to be a heavyweight long term.
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Maiden guided the Tigers to the 2019 Riverina League flag before they backed up by winning this year's shortened AFL Riverina Championship.
Former Coolamon player Murray Stephenson will take the helm next year after seven seasons with SANFL club Central Districts, with the Tigers' desire to find a player-coach making it too hard to refuse.
Shepherd has signed on for next year along with fellow key players Nathan Cooke and Shaun Flanigan, with Flanigan to continue as an assistant coach.
"As much as I enjoyed playing under 'Pag' (Maiden) and we're petty close, I can see the club's reasoning behind it," Shepherd said.
"I'm very close as a friend with Pag as well so it was a bit of a tough period and it took a bit to get my head around why it all happened, but in the end that's just footy.
"You can't take away what Pag did over two years, he did an incredible job. He might have set the club up for the next four to five years."
Shepherd said the players are looking forward to learning from Stephenson after his long stint in one of Australia's best leagues.
"So far it's been pretty good, I had about a half hour phone conversation with him on what he wants to do, and he's sent through a running program which has been pretty solid," Shepherd said.
"Hopefully that SANFL experience and standard he brings everyone will benefit from."
Shepherd said the obstacles of 2020 made it one of the more difficult years to rally his troops. Although this year's season only featured six teams and six rounds, he said the consistency in quality each week with teams recruiting players from other cancelled leagues made this year's flag as special as 2019.
"It probably was one of the harder years football-wise to get people motivated and keep everyone interested. Winning a premiership was one of the most rewarding things out of it," he said.
"Every game was a final, that's what it felt like. If you lost a game you could miss the second chance, every game the intensity was up and that's why it was a short but taxing year as well.
"We had a lot of returning juniors this year. Shaun Campbell is a real good mate of mine and Brad Graham as well, to win another premiership with them was pretty special."
Meanwhile, Narrandera have re-signed Joe Grinter and Issac Bunge after the club sat out this season.
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