South East Football Netball League (SEFNL) coach Michael ‘Jock’ Holland caught up with the Gazette’s DAVID NAGEL after the match to share his thoughts on a day when history was created.
Jock, you’ve had plenty of interleague experience, but created a bit of history today with the first win for SEFNL?
I supposed it was a chance to create history, to write the book on how this league should be represented, and everyone that follows in these blokes’ footsteps now will know what’s expected. They’ve been a fantastic group and I’ve been lucky enough to have that core group like Collo (Michael Collins), Holty (Marc Holt), Brandon Osborne, even Matty Lee and Troy McDermott, they’re young, but have played the last three years. True credit to them all, they were fantastic today and it just proves we’re a top-10 league and I think we can go a bit deeper.
Jock, it’s been a four-year build up to make that top 10. It must be pretty satisfying right now?
It is satisfying but I think we can go further. I’m not being smart here, but I do think we can get into the top five or six. We need everyone to commit to make that happen and I think we’ve created a culture that seems to be working right now. It does mean something for these players to play interleague, they’re not just throwing a jumper on for a game of footy, and I think they showed that today.
The next generation Jock, blokes like Collo and Holty aren’t going to be around forever?
Yeah, that Collo and Holty era is going to come to end at some stage, but we’ve got blokes like Matty Lee, he’s only 22, he’s got three under his belt, and it’s blokes like him, Dylan Quirk, he’s only young, they’ll have to step up and take the reins. Brandon Osborne, he’s only 25 I think, so we’re in pretty good hands.
How good was the backline today?
They were absolutely fantastic. Michael Riseley reminds me of Jarrod Goldsack, just the way he glides around and Michael Johnson was fantastic. Daniel Battaglin proved today that he belongs at this level, and obviously Brandon Osborne is a class act. Then obviously you’ve got the big red-headed bloke (Nathan Brown) who continues to amaze me every time he takes to the field.
Jock, I thought Collo, Ben Kerrigan, Russ Gabriel, Michael Harold and Dylan Quirk, those solid bodies really made a difference in the end?
We tried to get that mix right but you just never know. Sunraysia looked thick set so I thought we might over run them, but Collo, Micky Harold, Kerrigan, he had a massive impact, they were great on the inside today.
Jock, Holty might not think so, but what a positive sign to win without his usual impact?
I said to the big fella before the game, “can you give me eight”, and he said “I’ll see what I can do,” but that even spread, nine goal kickers, nine times out of 10 if you can do that you’re going to win games of footy. Jakey Smith kicked five, but we had a few blokes chime in with two or three and that makes a huge difference.
A word on Michael Collins, if possible the legend grew even stronger today. He and Marc Holt are contributing to a golden era aren’t they?
I’ve been around this area for the last 15-odd years, played against both of them, and I think they’ll go down easily in the top four or five players that I’ve seen, not just in the last four or five years, but the last 15. It’s a credit to both of them that they continue to put their hand up, when they’ve done everything in football, they don’t need to do this anymore. That shows the true test of them, not just as footballers, but as quality blokes. Collo amazes me every time he plays and I think today is probably the best I’ve seen him play in two years.
