DON DEAL

THE Bendigo Bank Bombers have signed a new two-year alignment agreement with Essendon, ensuring the club’s participation in the VFL until at least 2011.However, after persisting with it for five years, the club will scrap its reserves team, while it will also have a new senior coach next season.Adrian Hickmott has spent the past two years in the dual role of Bendigo senior coach and Essendon development coach.Hickmott will remain in his development coaching role with Essendon, but a new Bendigo coach will be appointed for 2010.With the new alignment deal announced after months of negotiations, it continues a partnership between Bendigo and Essendon which began in 2003.“We’ve again formed a two-year relationship with Essendon, which is a deeper relationship than what we’ve had in the past,’’ Bombers chairman David Joss told The Advertiser yesterday.“Structurally we will be doing things a little differently.“The reserves was something we brought in to try to help create that club atmosphere, but the reality is compared to other VFL clubs, our marketplace is smaller.’’ AFL Victoria has told the Bombers it will issue the club a new licence, despite it no longer fielding a reserves side. Much to the anger of several Bendigo Football League clubs, the Bombers’ reserves were introduced in 2005, but have constantly struggled, winning just 14 of their 87 games.In place of the reserves will be a newly-formed development squad.Players in the development squad won’t be listed with the Bombers, but will be given access to the club’s elite program, on top of their training and playing commitments with their own club.“With no reserves, what it means for next year is we will run two training squads, a group in Melbourne, like this year, and a group in Bendigo,’’ Joss said.“With the Bendigo guys, they will train along with a development squad we will run.“The development squad will be a group of non-listed players who will have the opportunity to train with us and get the benefit of the program.“With the development squad, we would be looking at players who have just come out of the TAC Cup, or guys from local clubs with a bit of talent who just want to progress their footy.“We believe the biggest benefit we can bring to local footy is our program, which is effectively an AFL program. So if we can pass that back by taking a few talented kids through the program then we’re happy to do that.“The Bendigo Bombers are about development of local talent and we really believe the new model gives good outcomes for both us and local footy.“And with no reserves any more, we plan to meet with every local club to agree on a workable model that minimises the impact of last-minute changes on clubs.’’The future of the Bombers’ beyond this season was constantly under the spotlight this year on the back of the club’s lack of on-field success - it won just one game between its seniors and reserves - its inability to play home games at the Queen Elizabeth Oval in the second half of the season, and an article in The Age on June 4 which suggested Essendon “appears likely to ditch its VFL partner, the Bendigo Bombers, and enter a stand-alone team next year’’.“I think most people expected Essendon not to realign with us, but we’ve put up a new model, and one we believe creates sustainability,’’ Joss said.“And Essendon is willing to back it to make sure it works.“We’ve addressed our finances, which you’ve got to do if you want to be sustainable, and we believe this new model goes a long way to building a more sustainable club.“After 12 years of financial stress (going back to the Bendigo Diggers) it’s time for tough decisions and the board is not going to back away from what will make the club sustainable.“Essendon has committed a lot deeper than it has before, the Bendigo Bank is joining up with Essendon as part of this agreement, and with that, Essendon will sit down with us and we will work on community outcomes.’’Joss said the decision for Hickmott’s tenure as Bombers’ coach to end was mutual.However, with his role still as development coach at Essendon, Hickmott will maintain an involvement with Bendigo.Bendigo’s new coach will be appointed by Essendon and be based in Melbourne.A development coach will be based in Bendigo to look after the Bendigo group, and also be an assistant coach on match-day.Asked if he was happy for the Bombers’ senior coach to remain based in Melbourne, Joss answered: “I am under this model; I know it can work well, as long as we have the right type of people who can work well together.“But I really believe as a whole, this is the best opportunity we’ve had for a number of years to really make things work.“I think it’s good for Bendigo footy, and we’ve had enough conversations with clubs in the league to know they’re happy with it, financially it’s going to work, and it gives us a good chance to try a few different things, like perhaps working closer with the Bendigo Pioneers for example, so it ticks a lot of boxes for us.“The other part of this is the QEO, and with the council now committed to seeking funds to redo the surface of the QEO, that’s really important for our survival.’’Meanwhile, Paul Scanlon has won the inaugural Carter Medal as the Bombers’ best and fairest.In his first year with Bendigo, Scanlon polled 171 votes, with captain James Flaherty the runner-up on 158.The reserves best and fairest was won by Jamie Hackett, who polled 41 votes to win by two from Simon Davies on 39. The Graham Warfe Memorial Trophy for the best first year player was awarded to Simon Weekley.