It is a game which is generating great interest in Division 1.
Not only does it signal Bandera’s return to his old stomping the ground, the game is also the first time Epping and Lower Plenty will meet since the 2011 Division 2 Grand Final.
Bandera sat with Michael Barnes to talk all things football ahead of the encounter this Saturday.
Michal Barnes: Player or coach?
Mario Bandera: Coach. The last few years as a player were not enjoyable and I found it a struggle to get up each week. I am in my fifth year as a coach and I have enjoyed every one of those years. As much as I enjoyed the challenges of being a player and the mental tussles of how to beat your opponent, when you are coaching you have to outsmart your opposition coach and at the same time it is also like a chess game. You have to get your players to beat their opponents, but you have to get your players into a position to allow them to beat their opponents, and at the same time execute the game plan in order to win.
Michael Barnes: Leigh Matthews says “coaching is an art not a science”.
Mario Bandera: I agree.
Michael Barnes: Biggest influence on you as a player and why?
Mario Bandera: Keith Burns. A lot of players did not like his style and he was very hard and could be abrasive, however if you took the time to get know him, he was an amazing coach and person. I was lucky enough to be his vice-captain at the Knights and I played under him at Collingwood in the under-19s. Keith taught me work ethic, he taught me the training methods needed to improve as a player, and he also taught me how to win mental battles out on the ground. When I hear myself coach sometimes I think I am a reincarnation of Keith Burns.
Michael Barnes: Biggest influence on you as a coach and why?
Mario Bandera: Phiv Demetriou. Fuller (Brett Fullerton, Epping senior assistant coach) and I were very open with Phiv and his honest feedback and advice has been invaluable.
Michael Barnes: Number one highlight as a player?
Mario Bandera: The 1999 season as a whole. We lost the Grand Final that year, however in 1999 it dawned on me that I could impose myself on the competition. It did take until 2002 for everything to come together and for me to win the competition best and fairest.
Michael Barnes: You started coaching in your last year as a player. Was that a good or bad decision?
Mario Bandera: As a player, bad. I should have listened to Wayne Harmes (former Lower Plenty senior coach) when I interviewed for the under-19s job. Wayne said you will find it hard to play and coach. I just didn’t realise the mental strain it would take on me. Therefore playing-wise, it was a bad decision. Coaching-wise, it was the best decision I ever made. The best thing I ever did as an inexperienced coach was to coach young men before I coached adults.
Michael Barnes: You have a very understanding and supportive wife, Mel. How has she helped you develop as a coach?
Mario Bandera: Anyone who has a very supportive partner will understand how important they are. I am very lucky she is a football person and she helps me in many areas off and on the field. An example, we did not have umpires for a practice match a few weeks ago and Mel kept ringing around until she found someone from another league, which simply took the pressure off me. Mel is very good at putting things into perspective for me. Sometimes I get frustrated because she tells me the truth and I don’t want to hear it. During the 2011 season I thought we had Lower Plenty covered and she kept telling me I might be getting a bit ahead of myself, so when we lost the Grand Final it was easier to take because she was softening the blow during the year because she could see it coming.
Michael Barnes: As a player you were very emotional and as a coach you are very emotional. How do you control your temper?
Mario Bandera: If you ask my players, I don’t! When I first took over at Epping I was very aggressive and dictatorial, but this is what had to be done. The culture of the club needed to change. I remember in my first season as senior coach the players just stopped trying after half-time against Whittlesea, and after the game I gave a 35-minute spray about what is acceptable at the Epping Football Club. To me that was the line in sand game and I have not had to go back there. I feel I can control my emotions better as I have matured as a person. Really aggressive coaches have a limited life span at a club.
Michael Barnes: Talk me through the 2012 Grand Final. You won it by four points, but you had 14 more scoring shots. How were you during the game and what did you say to the players at half-time and three quarter-time when you were behind?
Mario Bandera: I was always confident we would win the flag, even when North Heidelberg beat us in Round 18. I thought it gave us the extra hunger we needed to make sure Epping went all the way. My boys had come back from very bad situations during the year so I was confident they would do it again. Things started off well in the first quarter, and then in the second quarter things did not go according to plan and Harvey kicks six or seven goals, even if some were a little lucky. At half-time I was still supremely confident. I said to the players we have come back from worse positions than this and if we decide to flick the switch, we will win. My belief only waned for a short time when we gave away two 50m penalties. When they kicked the second goal from a 50m penalty which put them nine points in front, I turned to Borgy (Con Borg, Epping assistant coach) and said we need to get one bloody quickly otherwise we are in trouble. Centre bounce, Kreuzer to Totino, goal, 7.8 seconds. So my confidence waned for 7.8 seconds.
Michael Barnes: How has the off-field support been during your three seasons at Epping?
Mario Bandera: Great support. If you talk about the committee first, I came from outside the club and the committee backed me 100 percent. Steve Paserri was the president, Rod Watkins was the treasurer and they gave me amazing support, and in many cases they had to deal with the backlash from supporters and spectators. Unless you get support from the committee you are dead before you start. You have to have the committee working with you. I have supporters coming up to me to congratulate me on what I have done, and I say you should be thanking Steve and Rod and the other members of the committee. They are the ones who you should be buying a beer for, not me. Support as a coach started with (Brett) Fuller. Fuller and I developed together as coaches and without him I probably would not be coaching Epping, in fact I would not be coaching full stop. Brett was the one who got me to go to coaching courses and helped me understand the importance of development. In 2011 Borgy joined me as my assistant coach and he is a brilliant help and support. He helped reinforce the structures and he takes a lot of pressure off me. If I want to be the long-term coach of Epping, I need to be introducing other coaches to keep the message fresh and allow the players to hear another voice. I have great respect for the Epping Football Club and I feel privileged to be able to coach this great club.
Michael Barnes: Every season all clubs need to improve and no more so when you go up a division. What personnel changes have you made for last season?
Mario Bandera: We made a conscious decision to get more height into the side, and as soon as we did that we lost two of our tall players (one went overseas and the other has taken a year off due to work commitments). So after getting the extra tall players we needed, we are back to where we started. We were lucky enough to secure Peter Shepherd, a 28-year old full forward who kicked 70 goals last year in a side that finished fifth. We have also picked up some other first division experience.
Michael Barnes: Biggest challenge for your list this year?
Mario Bandera: Our biggest challenge is to beat the sides around us and we feel we can do that.
Michael Barnes: How has the pre-season been?
Mario Bandera: We had a great pre-season then in the last two weeks we had injuries to eight of our players.
Michael Barnes: Has your game plan changed for the 2013?
Mario Bandera: No, it will not change.
Michael Barnes: I think people underestimate the time local football coaches put into coaching and managing a team on and off the field. How many hours would you put in during a normal week off season and during a season?
Mario Bandera: (In the) off-season it’s 20 hours with recruitment, pre-season training, practice matches and planning. During the season 30 hours, including game day, training, review meetings and planning.
Michael Barnes: You would be the most inspirational coach I have listened to, and when you address the players, you don’t use notes. How do you formulate in your mind what you are going to say to the team?
Mario Bandera: A lot of it is gut, the motivational stuff just comes from the heart. It might sound a bit tacky, but you can’t be motivational towards your players if you don’t love and believe in them (although they don’t have to love you back!). During the quarters I have an assistant standing next me and he takes notes. Then at the end of the quarter I look at the notes and select three or four key points. So I start with those points and then they might lead to other points I have thought about during the quarter, and I always finish with some motivational points. The biggest thing I learnt from Keith and Phiv is you have to get to know your players.
Michael Barnes: You talked a lot about respect, why is that an important part of your coaching?
Mario Bandera: Without respect there is no success – that is my philosophy. You have to respect your jumper, you have to respect your club, you have to respect the opponent and you have to respect yourself in order to have real success.
Michael Barnes: Which Division 1 teams do you expect to be in the 2013 finals?
Mario Bandera: Heidelberg and Northcote Park
Michael Barnes: What is the most exciting thing about the 2013 season for you?
Mario Bandera: As I have said to my players, as much as the premiership last year was great, and it was fantastic to celebrate and enjoy the premiership as we did, all that premiership has entitled us to do is to challenge and test ourselves against the best clubs in our region.
Michael Barnes: Thanks for your time Supa.
Epping takes on Lower Plenty this Saturday at Montmorency Park, beginning at 2:10pm.
