SHE'S already got a Riverina League premiership under her belt, and experienced coach Meegan Johnson is confident she can help turn Turvey Park into a genuine contender.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Johnson, who guided Wagga Tigers to a flag a few years ago, has been charged with guiding the Bulldogs up the ladder as their new first grade netball coach.
The 39-year-old has extensive experience coaching young talent as The Riverina Anglican College's Tracey Gunson Shield mentor for the past five years, as well as in the school representative arena.
She was also coach at Collingullie-Glenfield Park for six years, where she also played.
The Bulldogs won two of 16 games in 2019 and went winless in this year's six-round AFL Riverina Championship, but Johnson is hoping it won't be a slow burn back to the top.
"I like teams who have the opportunity to develop and work together," she said.
"They're young and they seem eager and willing. I like the challenge of honing that and they seem keen to learn and listen.
"I think straight up it depends how we recruit over the off season, but the goal is always to win a grand final.
"It's in the back of my mind that there's a few things to develop. There'll be a focus on their strength and fitness, we identified that potentially it was a bit lacking.
"We'll focus on some basic skills and get them playing some really good positional play."
Johnson said they will look to recruit a couple of key players to boost areas they need to, but will put the faith in the young talent already at the club.
"I've had a bit to do with the Ovens and Murray league and a few other leagues. But having said that I don't think we need too many players, we've got a pretty solid base," she said.
"We're probably just looking for one or two experienced talls, we're probably a bit short at the moment."
Johnson said she doesn't plan to play at this stage, and devote her entire focus to coaching.
"I've only had the one year where I've just coached and not played, and that was at the Tigers," she said.
"It was good to have distance from the girls, you can maintain a bit more of a leadership role with them.
You need a good captain to communicate how the court feels back to you, but you can focus on how the girls are going instead of also yourself and your own fitness.
"I might look at doing a pre season with the girls and sound out how my body's feeling, but at this point my plan is just to coach from the sideline."
Johnson guided The Riverina Anglican College to their first final in nine years in September, where they were beaten 24-16 by defending champions Kildare Catholic College.
READ MORE
