Just watching survivor. Is Kirby Bentley still coaching with us?
No, she was only with our AFLW team in our first season.
I donāt think she is āan AFLW coachā anywhere right now.
In the early publicity photos/clips I thought she was wearing the Bomber team bikini, but then I saw the yellow element.
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The training clip in her intro features (only) Ugle, Ryan, and Cornish. It was presumably just a favour from them, rather than any legit EFC VFLW training moment.
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P.S. Moordijt, on her shirt, is a Noongar word meaning great/strong/good.
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It at least gives me someone to follow.
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Why the heck does it say 2023, when surely it should be 2024.
Because, as I said, she was āfuture endeavouredā after our first season (2022).
But wait, thereās more.
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Not sure if they failed first time on the above, or someone else also left.
Waitā¦ āActing Head of AFLW James Polkinghorneā?
Essendon has confirmed its coaching panel for the 2024 NAB AFLW season, with a blend of new and returning coaches to bolster the program this year.
Senior Coach Natalie Wood will continue for a third season alongside assistants Natasha Hardy and Bernard Shepheard, while the Bombers also welcome former AFLW Premiership Coach Paul Groves to the program as Midfield Coach. VFLW Senior Coach Cherie OāNeill will now step up to take on the Development Coach role this year.
The addition of Groves brings a wealth of knowledge to the Bombers from over 13 years of coaching experience, his CV including a maiden AFLW flag for the Western Bulldogs as their Senior Coach in 2018 and more recently holding the position of Head of Sport at St. Bernardās College.
After serving as a Development Coach in 2023, Shepheard will step into the role of Forward Coach this season, now entering his 14th year at the club after prior roles as Head of VFL and Community.
Hardy started with the Dons as their inaugural VFLW Vice-Captain in 2018 before moving into coaching roles with North Melbourne, re-joining the AFLW Bombers ahead of their inaugural season and holding the post as Defence Coach this year.
Enjoying a strong season with the VFLW squad challenging for a finals berth, OāNeillās shift into the development role will provide over a decadeās worth of coaching experience for the side this season.
Acting Head of AFLW James Polkinghorne said the coaching group will provide excellent leadership and guidance to the playing group.
āWe are thrilled to have finalised our coaching panel for the 2024 season. Itās fantastic to have stability in the group, with Natalie and Natasha continuing for their third seasons and Bernard stepping up to an assistant role after his year as a development coach last year,ā Polkinghorne said.
āWe are also excited to welcome Paul to the club. Paul is well respected throughout the industry and has excellent experience working in womenās football and education. As Premiership coach with the Western Bulldogs AFLW program, Paul understands what it takes to be a successful football program. His knowledge will be highly beneficial to the playing group and wider program.
āItās also fantastic to have Cherie step up from our VFLW program into a development coach role. Cherie only joined Essendon before this yearās VFLW season and has already made a great impact throughout the club. With over 10 years of coaching experience, Cherie is an excellent addition to our panel.ā
2024 AFLW coaching panel
Senior Coach - Natalie Wood
Assistant Coach (Defence) ā Natasha Hardy
Assistant Coach (Midfield) ā Paul Groves
Assistant Coach (Forwards) ā Bernard Shepheard
Development Coach ā Cherie OāNeill
Iām still not sold on this oneā¦
+2 years
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Hmm, might have held off until end of this season.
But the girls do seem to play for Nat (and after hearing her talk footy, Iām not surprised, sheās an excellent communicator), so I can kind of understand it.
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nino rejoices
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I notice that ChristinaBernardi is NOT listed in this articleā¦ so I conclude she does have an ongoing role.