Tara Murray
St Albans has turned to a familiar face to lead it into the Victorian Turf Cricket Association senior division season.
The Saints announced that Michael Else would be coach for the season.
Else has a long-standing history with the club, having coached several junior teams and served as senior coach during the 2022-23 season.
He is a premiership captain and part of the club’s hall of fame.
“A true club stalwart, Michael brings a wealth of experience and dedication to our team,” the club said.
“Michael is very keen to start pre-season training and share his knowledge and passion for the game with all our players. We are confident that under his guidance, our club will continue to grow and achieve great success.”
Else said you never say never when it comes to coaching.
“It is an exciting time,” he said. “We had a few other irons in the first but they didn’t work out, so they landed on me.”
Else said with the competition shaping up strongly with a number of club’s recruiting well, it would be a good challenge for them.
Last season the Saints finished in fifth spot a game outside the top four after a number of close losses.
“We’re not 100 per cent sure where we are in terms of our list,” he said. “We will know in two-three weeks.
“It’s hard to say how we will go, but we’re hoping that we will be thereabouts. Things didn’t go our way last year, hopefully it changes this year.”
Else said they had a number of young players in the club that would come into the senior program.
“We’ve got some good young players coming through from juniors,” he said. “Whether they are up to senior cricket we’re not sure yet, but some will come through the twos and see how we go.”
