Courtesy of Northern NSW Football
Northern NSW Football held its 2024 State Coaching Conferences at Coffs Coast Synthetics and Lake Macquarie Regional Football Facility with a record number of ambitious coaches in attendance.
More than 140 coaches across the northern NSW region attended the informative days, in Coffs Harbour on 1 December and Lake Macquarie on 8 December, which were full of theory and practical sessions delivered by leading professionals.
The conference speakers included World Cup winning ParaMatildas Head Coach Kelly Stirton, Football Queensland Coach Education Manager Davide Bertamini, APA Titled Musculoskeletal Physiotherapist Jonathon Newman, NNSWF Futsal Development Manager Damon Shaw as well as Newcastle Jets A-League Men’s Head Coach Rob Stanton and Head of High-Performance and Sports Science John Kobiela.
Attendees also took part in practical sessions led by Newcastle Jets A-League Men’s Head Goalkeeper Coach Andrew Goldman, Newcastle Jets Youth Team Coach Damien Zane, Football Australia Elite Programs Manager Ian Crook in addition to NNSWF Technical Director Ryan Doidge and Talent Development Officer Brett Angell.
NNSWF Talent Development Officer Brett Angell was delighted with the number of attendees.
“It was great that we reached capacity and that so many coaches in our area want to expand their tools,” Angell said.
“Hopefully they will go away and they’ve enjoyed what they’ve seen and would want to come back next year.
“It was unfortunate that we had to turn people away but it would be great to see it increase next year and continue to get bigger.”
NNSWF Technical Director Ryan Doidge encouraged coaches to take their knowledge back to clubs and expand the skills of local players.
“I hope coaches go back to their environment and apply what they’ve learnt for the betterment of the game and the players within their space,” Doidge said.
Doidge was thrilled with the success of the conferences.
“It’s important that we service metro and regional areas and provide opportunities to all coaches across our northern NSW footprint,” Doidge said.
“As part of our commitment to increasing opportunities for coaches, it’s vital that we provide events like this to not only the Hunter region but also regional areas.
“Both conferences were fantastic days. I’m certainly looking forward to coaches putting some of the things they’ve learnt into practice for 2025.
“I would like to extend a big thank you to the presenters and attendees for participating in two successful conferences and we hope it helps our coaches not only next season but beyond into their coaching careers.”
