Highton coaches usher in new era
HIGHTON will usher in a new era this summer with Brandon Ross and Hayden Murrell taking over as cocoaches at McDonald’s Reserve.
The pair take over from former coach Brad Scown, who led the Heat last summer.
Ross has been a mainstay of the Heat bowling attack since his debut in 2013-14, taking 92 wickets despite missing the entire 2016-17 season with injury.
Murrell, 21, has cemented his spot since taking 6-45 in Highton’s Grand Final loss to Newcomb & District two summers ago, and said he is looking forward to the new role with Ross despite initial surprise at being approached for the job.
“I’m pretty excited; I was pretty shocked when they asked me,” Murrell said, who has 36 appearances for the first XI.
“But after thinking about it a bit more and the possibility of doing it with ‘Rossy’ was pretty appealing as well, so I’m really excited about it.
“We also want to create a more united environment around the club as a whole.”
The Heat missed the finals last summer under Scown after successive final appearances in GCA2, and Murrell said the ultimate glory is still at the forefront of the new co-coaches’ minds.
“Obviously a premiership is the main goal, but there’s a long way to go to get that,” he said.
“We’ve got a talented group, not only in the first XI but through the other grades as well. We want to make sure we develop the youth of the club too.
“We also know we have a pretty talented list, but that obviously doesn’t mean a lot if you don’t put some structure and organisation around it.”