Ellerslie lock in coaching staff for the 2023 NRFL Championship
Ben Fletcher who led the ponies to a promising 7th place last year in the Lotto NRFL Div 1 league (which has now been re-branded as the Lotto NRFL Championship) has had to do a mini rebuild with his support staff following the departure of Seb Bouvier, Tony Jenkins and Aaron Collin.
His first appointment is that of physio Jonathan Davidson who is a familiar face around the club, having played in goal for Ellerslie the last couple of seasons – he is stepping back from playing to concentrate on his career, but will put down the physio tape and pick up some gloves if needed.
Jono will be mentored by Avantha Hewavitharana who runs the Physio Hub franchise – with offices in Penrose and at Michaels Ave in the YMCA.
Next on the radar for Ben was to deliver a Reserves coach, to help guide and develop our talented young players and the club is excited to see Trevor Johnston take the role, with a lot of experience behind him, both in football itself and sports psychology, we can’t wait to see what this group of young men can do this season (and beyond).
The final piece of the puzzle was someone to work with our Goalkeepers and Ben turned to a trusted aide in Trent Hirst who has played NRFL previously for Franklin and brings an amazing work ethic and commitment to push our young group of Goalkeepers to their limit in training.
Jono, Trevor and Trent join existing staff members who are returning from the 2022 season, Masillan Veejian (Assistant Coach), Dylan Moxon (Strength and Conditioning) and Tim Adams (Team Manager) to form a group of like minded experienced people who will help Ben and the players achieve their goals.
“We are excited for the season to begin now and the group has put in the hard yards during pre-season to push on from the season last year. The addition of Trevor and Trent has been fantastic so far and adding their experience and knowledge is only going to grow as we continue through the year. Just like the coaching staff, we have a few new faces around the team. There are a few returning players that have been away from the club for a couple of years (Watch out for the announcements) and additions to both the first team and U23s. If the group continue to play with the strength, courage, and freedom from pre-season, every game will be exhilarating. The club, staff and players look forward to your support for the opening game, as we host Waiheke United on Saturday 26th March. #UpThePonies”
More information to follow including the 2023 schedule and the 2023 squad.
#UpthePonies
#FallinLoveWithFootball
