DANIEL McFerran has been unveiled as Reservoir’s new senior coach.
The inaugural Frank Rosbrook medallist replaces Ross Terranova in the Mustangs’ top job as the club moves into Division 2 after winning this year’s third division flag.
It is McFerran’s first coaching appointment after a decorated playing career.
The winner of the NFL’s 2007 Division 1 best and fairest while playing with West Preston-Lakeside, McFerran also won multiple Western Region Football League premierships with St Albans.
He was selected on the wing in St Albans’ 1990-2001 and 2001-2011 teams of the decade and also spent time with Montmorency, West Coburg and Taylors Lakes.
McFerran said he was looking forward to the challenge of preparing Reservoir for its move into Division 2.
“From speaking to the committee, the playing group is very tight and there is always a lot of excitement after you win a premiership,” McFerran told NFL.org.au.
“Over the second half of the year they were obviously playing some very good footy so ‘Terra’ (Ross Terranova) and the club were obviously doing something right.
“I have some big shoes to fill and I don’t think it will be all roses, obviously there is going to be a step up in competition but hopefully we can be competitive and who knows what can happen from there.
“I think there may be a couple who are considering retiring, which sometimes happens after you win a premiership.
“Hopefully everyone decides to hang around to work hard on the transition to Division 2 football.”
After a playing career that spanned over 600 games, McFerran hung up the boots at the conclusion of the 2013 season.
He stepped away from football in 2014, before joining Essendon District Football League Division 1 club Westmeadows as a senior assistant this year.
He believes that experience will put him in good stead for his first senior coaching position with Reservoir.
“I’d probably decided to retire at the beginning of my final playing year. I then took a year off to see whether I was staying involved in football out of habit or because I loved it and wanted to stay involved,” he said.
“(Westmeadows coach) Dave Connell gave me a call and was keen for someone who was aspiring to be a senior coach to come on as a senior assistant there.
“It really panned out well and I really enjoyed the role and being back involved in a football club again. It helped me make my mind up I guess.
“There’s a lot of preparation that goes into getting a senior job these days. I was sort of fortunate that ‘Terra’ got a job elsewhere and the club was nice enough to give me the opportunity to take over.”
McFerran will meet the Reservoir playing group on Wednesday and has his eyes set on a mid-November start to the club’s first pre-season since breaking its 30-year premiership drought.
A secondary school teacher, McFerran says the skills used in his profession, as well as the positives from the coaches he played under, will mould his coaching style.
“You have a lot of different coaches over your playing career and they all have their strengths and weaknesses,” he said.
“I’m probably going to try to take as many of the things that I have liked from those coaches and implement them into a game style and way of coaching.
“Being a secondary school teacher, I’d like to try to use those skills to build relationships and then look at developing people to make them better players.”
