MARK Ellis yesterday declared his seventh season as coach of the Bendigo Bank Pioneers Football Club will be his last as he prepares to tackle a new role with AFL Victoria.The changes to the coaching structure were announced yesterday at Pioneers headquarters in Golden Square by Ellis, the club’s regional manager Ray Byrne and AFL Victoria high performance manager Leon Harris.After a nine-year stint in the TAC Cup under-18s competition, Ellis is looking forward to a new challenge by working with AFL Victoria’s academy program and the under-16 and under-18 squads.In announcing the changes, Byrne said Ellis had made an “enormous contribution” to the Pioneers.“Mark has played a key role in many players graduating from the Pioneers to now be playing in the AFL or VFL,” Byrne said.“Mark has done everything with great enthusiasm, and nothing was too hard for him to do or try.”Ellis will still have an active role in assisting the Pioneers and the club’s new coach, who will be employed on a full-time basis.Development is the keyword of his coaching philosophy.“Whether players from the Pioneers were drafted to the AFL, played in the VFL, or in local football, the goal as a coaching group was to always help in their development, not just in football, but life skills.”It’s been an incredible journey throughout his coaching stint with the Pioneers.“At times it’s been tough in terms of win-loss ratio, but this program is so much more than just about winning and losing,” Ellis said of the TAC Cup competition.“As a coaching group we always looked at helping players reach their full potential”Ellis thanked the players, staff and parents for their support in every season and for their dedication to the program.“Ray (Byrne) is a terrific sounding board. He has so much knowledge to draw on and always stuck to his guns on what we are about and trying to achieve,” said Ellis.“The attitude of the whole group is fantastic.”Ellis will continue in his full-time role at Bendigo Bank, which has given him great support in his coaching career.“To be working with AFL Victoria is a great opportunity,” Ellis said.For the past three years, Leon Harris has spent a fair amount of time working with Ellis through the Victoria Country campaign at the national under-18 championships.They teamed up in the coaching box for Victoria Country in the five-match under-18 titles which finished on Wednesday night.“Mark will play a key role with the AFL Academy programs for under-16 and under-18 players in terms of selection, coaching and mentoring,” said Harris, who oversees the TAC Cup coaches.Although there are big challenges ahead, Ellis is keen for the Pioneers to end the 2011 campaign on a high, starting with tomorrow’s clash at Epsom-Huntly against the ladder-leading Sandringham Dragons.