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NEW Leitchville-Gunbower coach Danny Teskera says he isn’t feeling any pressure of expectation in taking over the reins of the two-time defending Heathcote District league premiers.
Teskera is the new coach of the Bombers following Michael Pilcher’s one-season stint at the helm.
Teskera was an assistant to Pilcher this year and has previously coached the club’s reserves in 2014, been a chairman of selectors and was involved with the Bombers’ under-17 side in 2013 when they won the premiership.
The Bombers have played in four-straight HDFNL senior grand finals against North Bendigo, winning the past two premierships.
The new coach says he isn’t feeling any extra burden of pressure to maintain the lofty standards that comes with taking over a club that has won back-to-back premierships and 66 of 74 games over the previous four seasons.
“Not at all… I’ve been around footy for a long time and it really is a case of the old adage of just taking it one week at a time,” Teskera said on Wednesday.
“If you let that get to you as a coach then you wouldn’t take the job on. I’ve got a vision and a clear pathway of how we want to go about it in 2019 and if we can play and train the way we want to then the rest takes care of itself.
“All you can do is put yourself in the best position because there are so many other anomalies out of your control. Having good depth is going to be important, so we’re also going to be really focused on our under-17s and reserves.”
As well as the senior side having won back-to-back premierships, the Bombers’ under-17s have also won three premierships in a row.
“It’s a real testament to the club and the work it has put in on its junior development,” Teskera said.
“With our reserves, having such a strong senior list it was very hard for guys to find their way in for a game this year, so we’re mindful of continuing to develop our locals and that’s something we’ll be working on.
“We’ll certainly be aiming to give everyone a fair go at playing some senior footy.”
Teskera’s playing assistant coach will be two-time Bombers’ premiership midfielder Liam Guinan.
At this stage the only confirmed departures from the Bombers’ 2018 premiership team that defeated North Bendigo by nine points are captain Daniel Couwenberg and Bart Walsh, who have both retired.
“They are the only two definites from the premiership team this year who have said they are done. We’ll be hoping to make some announcements soon on some players who are coming back to the club, which will be big for us,” Teskera said.
One of the players returning to the field next year for the Bombers will be young forward Jack Dye, who missed all of this season, plus the 2017 grand final win with a broken collarbone.
“Jack has had a bit of time off and did the running for us this year, but he’s looking to come back in 2019 better and stronger and he’s a player we really rate,” Teskera said.
Next year will be a milestone season for the Bombers, who will commemorate 100 years of the Leitchville club.
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