by Lisa Albergo reporting for AFANA from Chicago
Former Melbourne and West Coast player Andy Lovell has taken the last assistant coaching position at the Gold Coast Suns. Lovell played 121 games with Melbourne 1988-1995 and 43 games with the Eagles 1996-1998. He has resigned his three year position as development coach and senior coach of the Saints' VFL affiliate Sandringham to join the Suns.
Upon his retirement as a player, Lovell joined West Coast's coaching staff as an assisant in 1999, then was appointed Player Welfare and Development Manager 2000-2002. He left that role to become senior coach of WAFL team East Perth. He coached East Perth 2003-2004 before returning to Victoria as an assistant with Geelong 2005-2006.
Gold Coast Coach Guy McKenna noted Lovell's wealth of experience as an assistant coach, senior coach and development coach. He said that his experience would be valuable to the coaching staff which needs to develop the younger players as the team prepares to enter the AFL next year. Lovell said he was looking forward to working with the young group and being a part of history. He joins Ken Hinkley, Shaun Hart, Shane O'Bree and Dean Solomon to complete the Suns' coaching staff.
Source: Travis Auld, Club Media Release
Former Melbourne and Collingwood player and 2000 Brownlow Medal winner Shame Woewodin has joined Brisbane as an assistant coach. Woewodin played 138 1998-2002 for Melbourne and 62 games 2003-2005 for Collingwood. After retiring from AFL football, he returned to West Australia where he played for East Fremantle in the WAFL for two more seasons. He was immediately appointed as East Fremantle's senior coach and took the team to their first Finals appearance in eight years.
Brisbane Coach Michael Voss, a contemporary of Woewodin's during their playing days, said Woewodin had a "... healthy reputation as a player for his tremendous work ethic and professionalism which has ... translated to his off-field roles ...".
Source: Sam Lord, Club Media Release
Former Collingwood player Alan Richardson has joined Carlton's coaching staff after stints as an assistant at the Western Bulldogs and Collingwood. He played 114 games with the Magpies 1987-1996. His first coaching job was with East Burwood, guiding them to successive premierships. He coached VFL side Coburg before joining the Bulldogs as an assistant and crossed to Collingwood in 2006 as a development coach. Richardson has been an assistant with Essendon for the past two years and was also a candidate for the Port Adelaide job which went to Matthew Primus.
Source: Stephen WIlson, Club Media Release
Former Geelong and North Melbourne player Leigh Tudor and retired Swan Henry Playfair have both been appointed as assistant coaches with the Swans. Tudor, who played a total of 68 AFL games for the Cats and Kangaroos 1993-1996, served as Geelong's VFL coach 2005-2008 and joined St Kilda's coaching staff in 2009. The recently retired Henry Playfair has been appointed development coach. In that role, Playfair will oversee Sydney's reserves team.
Source: Jenny McAsey, Club Media Release
David Teague, Carlton’s development coach and senior coach of Carlton’s VFL affiliate the Northern Bullants, has accepted a position with West Coast as an assistant coach. Teague, who has been with the Blues for three seasons, informed the club he wanted to move on to further develop his coaching career.
Teague played 33 games with North Melbourne 2001-2003 and 50 for the Blues 2003-2007 before retiring at the end of the 2007 season. He has coached the Bullants to three consecutive VFL Grand Finals. Teague joined Carlton from North Melbourne after the 2003 season and won the John Nicholls Medal for Carlton's Best and Fairest, in his first year with the Blues in 2004.
Coming in as an assistant is Gavin Brown, who played 254 games with Collingwood 1984-2000. He worked for a time with Fremantle in a player welfare role before being appointed as an assistant at Collingwood.
Source: Ian Coutts, Carlton Media Release
Fomer players Paul Hudson and Adam Kingsley have joined St Kilda's staff.
Hudson played 245 AFL games with Hawthorn, the Western Bulldogs and Richmond1990-1996. He was a member of Hawthorn's premiershp team in 1991 and the son of Hawk legend Peter Hudson. He began his coaching career with TAC Cup junior team Gippsland Power and guided them to a premiership in 2005. Hudson was then an assisant with Brisbane 2006-2008 before joining Collingwood last year. He wiill serve as development manager at the Saints.
Adam Kingsley was an inaugural player with Port Adelaide when they came into the AFL. He played 170 games with the Power, including the 2004 Premiership. He won the club's best and fairest award in 1998, the Michael Tuck Medal (as best on ground) in the 2001 preseason Grand Final and was awarded life membership to Port in 2006. He has been an assistant with Port since he retired at the end of 2006.
Hudson and Kingsley come in as replacements for Leigh Tudor and Stephen Silvagni. Tudor, as mentioned above, has joined Sydney's staff. Silvagni, former champion defender with Carlton, has joined the Greater Western Sydney team as an assistant.
Other changes at St Kilda:
Jesse Smith, who joined the Saints from North Melbourne, has decided to retire due to his brief career (27 games with North and none with the Saints) being hampered by hamstring and ankle injuries.
The Saints have also delisted Adam Pattison, Andrew Lovett (fired from the club during the preseason) and rookies Mark Hutchings and Blake McGrath. They have elevated Tom Simpkin from the rookie list to the seniors.
Pattison played 61 games for Richmond 2005-2009 but was delisted at the end of last year. He was then drafted by the Saints but managed just 5 games for the Saints in 2010.
Under AFL rules, Lovett had to remain on St Kilda's list until the season ended even though the Saints terminated his contract during the preseason after he was arrested and charged with "adult assault" against a woman.
Source: Vanessa Gigliotti, Club Media Release; AFL Record Season Guide, AFL Grand Final Record
Article last changed on Thursday, October 14, 2010 - 8:59 PM EDT
