St Albans has opted for a smooth internal transition in the post-Ian Denny era with the elevation of two-year assistant coach Marcus Barclay to the senior coaching role.
Barclay, 39, had a burning desire to return to the head coaching position after being left with a sour taste following his controversial dumping by Albion three years ago.
He was shown the door at the end of the 2011 season after guiding his grand final side to victories in all bar three matches – and one of those was a draw.
Barclay saw the Saints job as the perfect situation to relaunch his coaching career.
“I didn’t put in for anything else,” he told the Weekly. “It wasn’t so much putting all the eggs in the one basket but I just felt that if ever there was a club that I wanted to coach after being there two years, this was the one.
“It’s well run off the field, we just have to get it right on the field. I’m looking forward to it.”
Barclay admits he was stunned when Albion axed him after taking the side to a minor premiership and says he still hasn’t been told why.
But his exit was not all bad as it gave him the chance to work under Denny at a rebuilding Saints that reached the finals last season.
“I’ll never know the reason and that’s why it burns a little,” he said.
“The opportunity came up at St Albans and they’re a fantastic footy club and a fantastic bunch of blokes. It’s a really good opportunity.”
The Saints are in a healthier position than when Barclay arrived at the club.
The past two seasons have seen Denny blood youth into the senior line-up but also strengthen the side with battle-hardened key position players.
They reached the finals, where their deficiencies were also exposed in the elimination final hammering from Altona.
“Our best is very much good enough,” Barclay said. “It’s just that our not-so-best is not quite there.
“That showed up in the final against the reigning premiers, who knew what it was all about while St Albans hadn’t been there for a couple of years.
“We have a fantastic group of leaders who are 28 to 32 and a fantastic group of kids who are 18 to 20. There’s a gap there and we need to bridge that gap. Then we’ll be more than competitive.”
Barclay’s greatest strength is his tactical nous and he expects his players to be able to replicate what is taught on the training track and hit the ground running on the opening day of the season.
“I enjoy trying to set a side up really early, so if a ball bounces in one spot, you need to be in spot x,” he said. “By the time the boys hit the practice games, every single one of them will know where they need to be.”
Barclay wants to continue to drive the “tight-knit” culture set by Denny.
A pre-season focus will be on improving skill levels, an area Barclay believes set Deer Park and Spotswood apart from the rest of the teams in the top division of the WRFL.
Meanwhile, Albion has appointed Aaron Tymms to succeed Mark Greenshields as senior coach, while Aldo Pagano will take charge of the reserves.
