Year 4

Back: Michael Allen (Assistant Coach), Andrew Auret (Manager), Michael Farrant (Coach)
Middle: Lucas O’Brien, Isaac Beitmanas, Josh Farrant, James Pollard, Lachlan Caddy, Luke Barwise, Charles Allen, Riley Auret
Front: Tom Savage, Ben Kivelhan, Tim Glazier, Daniel Parry, Leo Bolton, Kade Gilmore, Lindsay Corbett

After enduring a rigorous off-season of intense trading and astute drafting with some players moving on to greener pastures and new talent coming in, the White team started the season proper with an even fifteen on the list.

As expected skills were somewhat rusty in the early season games, however to their credit the team’s endeavour in terms of effort couldn’t be faulted and this was a theme that continued throughout the season.

With the season progressing the skill level started to lift and at times there was some exciting end to end link up play which was wonderful to see. A couple of midseason highlights included a Friday night Derby against the Year 4 Reds and another Sunday Derby against the Year 4 Blues which produced a tense but good spirited match.

However I believe the standout games for the team, parents and coaching staff this year would have to be the last two games against a very physical Piara Waters side who got off to a great start and a cracker of a last game against a very talented, hard working Riverton team.

The team was down in the first quarter against Piara Waters but came back hard and up until half time Riverton had the team’s measure but a wonderful fight back in the second half provided a glowing testament to the team’s character of never giving up.

It has been an absolute privilege to coach the boys this year and being involved in helping them to continue to grow, both in terms of their footy skills and especially in character. The consistent effort and support for each other throughout the season has been wonderful to watch.

I’d like to thank Mike Allen (assistant coach) for both his time and energy and Andrew Auret (team manager) for allowing me to concentrate on coaching and ensuring the season ran smoothly.

Also an extra special thanks to all the parents who attended training and the games. We had a very enthusiastic core group who provided massive encouragement and support at training and throughout out the season not only to our boys but also the opposition teams.

On behalf of Mike, Andrew and myself have a great summer and we look forward to seeing you all again next preseason.

Michael Farrant (Coach)

Back: Tim Bell (Coach)
Middle: Caleb Vyse, Liam Sharp, , Jonathon Rackham, Elijah Vandersteen, Isaac Quadros, William Yeomans, Benjamin Hunt
Front: Levi Vandersteen, James Bell, Declan Short, Samuel Major, Max Beasley, Lucas Cook
Absent: Neil Rackham & Lachelle Vandersteen (Team Managers)

What an awesome year under the Friday Night Lights!!

In what was the first year of competitive football for most of our boys, our team exceeded expectations in so many ways. Seeing the way they have gelled together as a team, the improvement in their skills, and many individual highlights has been great fun. The support of the families has also been fantastic with an enjoyable atmosphere every week.

We started a bit light on for numbers after a broken arm and a car collision before week one, but both boys showed their toughness to be back on the field for the second half of the season. Our two super talented Year Threes played up for the whole year and had a big impact on the game. Seven of our 14 Boys kicked a goal in their first season, and all players got a good share of the ball.

The thing that impressed me most about my team was their desire and fighting spirit, especially in their tackling. Every player played every game out to the final siren and went hard into every contest. In many games our fourth quarter was our best quarter and we wore down some bigger and more experienced sides over the course of the game.

The opportunity to play on Friday nights for the whole season has been fantastic and allowed a lot of boys to join the club that would otherwise not have been able to play. We are very grateful to Booragoon JFC and the East Fremantle District for giving us this chance, and I believe that the team has made the most of the opportunity. If anyone else knows potential players that could play  Friday nights, please let me know for next year.

As we work on our skills over the offseason, and continue to learn how to position and lead to the ball, we have a great foundation for a successful football team. I look forward to hopefully coaching this group, and a few extra recruits, for another great season next year.

Tim Bell (Coach)

Back: Ryan Manason (Team Manager), Lindsay Marley (Coach), Craig Nelson (Assistant Coach), Blair Marley (Assistant Coach)
Middle: Kai McLeod, Sam Nelson, William Fraser, Jack Heuchan, Jamen Wain, Myles Marley, Travis Strahan
Front: Matthew Gerovich, Jordan Brown, Simon Budge, Joseph Mattingly, Finn Landsborough, Kieran Manason, Jermain Kickett, Evan Fasher.
Absent: Callum Boyce, Andrea Manason (Team Manager)

Another fantastic year full of energy and enthusiasm from a team of 16 aspiring young footballers. We welcomed three new additions this year who quickly settled in to become great team mates. This year was all about developing the skills and understanding of our fantastic game, something we will continue and expand next year. The values of working as a team shone through early as our boys started to run in numbers and create opportunities for their team mates. It is such a fantastic feeling watching 5 or 6 boys link up in a passage of play to move the ball rapidly from one end of the ground to the other.

Our bunch of boys are definitely ready to take the next step in becoming successful young footballers and I hope you all return next year, hopefully 30cm taller and 10kg heavier!

A highlight of the season was the derby against the white team. This game was played at a higher intensity than any other game I have seen at this age. The game was clean, fast and a great spectacle to watch.  Thanks to Mick and Andrew, Its great working with you guys.

We also had the Red team join the fold of Year 4’s this year. Unfortunately, we did not have the opportunity to play against the Red team, but I did fill in as coach for one game and the potential in this team is endless. Thanks Tim and Neil, we did have a few great kid’s vs coach games throughout the season.

Thank you Blair, your help as an assistant coach is fantastic, the kids all look up to you. I hope you are learning and enjoying from your experiences along the way.

Massive thanks to Ryan and Andrea Manason, your tireless work has been instrumental in ensuring game day runs smoothly, nothing is ever too much trouble.

A huge thanks to Craig Nelson, once again we have stood side by side with the common goal of developing our team of kids into better footballers and young men. I appreciate all the assistance and advise along the way, I hope you have enjoyed the journey as much as I have so far.

Special mention to Ryan Budge out team photographer, thanks once again for taking some great photos and sharing with us all.

Thanks to all the Mums, Dads, Grandma’s, Grandads and Siblings who have come down each week to wave flags, cut oranges and cheer for our team, the atmosphere around our team has only improved because of you.

I hope everyone involved with the Mighty Year 4 Blue team have enjoyed the season and I hope to see you all again next year.

Lindsay Marley (Coach)

Back: Brady Walker, Cameron Ballantine, Anthony Wild, Jackson Thom, Brodie Ridley, Jake Broomfield, Jaiken Vyse, Luke Dharmapana, Henry Napoli, Jesse Switzer
Front: Leo Matthys, Zach Baker, Wesley Robartson, Aidan Mapstone, Skye Saunders, Luke Dorrill, David Bell

The Year 4 Reds brought together a great bunch of young men that we believe sing the club song louder and more passionately than any other in our club!

Our team focus this year was to improve our clearances by getting low to the ground, taking our marks and leading up to the kicker. Every player in our team showed significantly improvement in these areas and towards the latter half of the season we played some wonderful and exciting football.

Some of the highlights for our team was the amazing courage that so many of our players showed regardless of their size or their opposition. Our tackling pressure and strength was fantastic and generally if we got that right then our overall performance was excellent.

We had some very strong players that had many great moments of contested marking, 30+ metre kicking, 30+ possessions and dashing runs off the half back line and we are sure that several will become high level players of the future. But we got more enjoyment and satisfaction from the development and confidence of the players that did not have the same skills or had joined us for the first time after playing another sport.

Well done boy and we look forward to next year.
Warren Wild (Coach)

Back: Charles Casale (Assistant Coach), David Glass (Coach), Mick Strahan (Assistant Coach), Leslie Eddy (Team Manager)
Middle: Cameron Ross, Thorfinn Dunn, Harry Skepper, Jack Alexander, Tom Glass, Douglas Allison, Dalton Eddy, Luke Strahan, Kyle Brestovac
Front: Jimmy Bardill, Sam Hesp, Harry Collins, Matthew Wallace, George Joannides, Jordan Allanson
Absent: Hayden Centa (inset)

I have again had the pleasure of coaching the year 4 Blues for the 2015 season.

Thankfully after a number of years in the Auskick and Super 8 system, the boys finally had an opportunity to play against opposition teams from the local East Fremantle district on a weekly basis.
We had 17 boys enrolled for our Blue team, all from a variety of schools from around the local area.

Over the course of the year we played on a home and away basis and included a weekly training session on Wednesday night. Their improvement throughout the year was fantastic, to me their teamwork, competitiveness and skill improvement stood out.

Special comments for our players are:

• Harry: Our best tackler for the year, provided a lot of run and loved to compete
• Strahany: Stood tall in the forward line numerous times, taking strong marks and kicking some good long goals
• Jordie: Fantastic season, running hard and kicking the ball off both feet, a great team player……great year Jordie
• Skep: A beautiful left foot kick whose marking improved thoughout the year….keep practising your snaps Haz
• Dalton: The quickest of our boys who loved to get in there and attack the ball, showed great improvement as the year progressed.
• Rossy: Great improver throughout the year, when he played in front he was unstoppable ! A great listener which is so important.
• Jack: Continued to improve as the season went on – a ruckman in the making who loves to snap at goal ! Keep working hard Jack.
• Big George: Smallest on our team but had the biggest heart, loved to get in and get a kick plus not scared to tackle anyone.
• Matty: Found a niche in the back line and continued to improve…..began to attack the ball and dispose of with quick hands, great to watch mate.
• Thorfy: Loved the forward line, and kicked some great goals late in the season, laid some fantastic hard tackles, keep working at it Thorf.
• Kyle: Beautiful passer of the ball by hand and foot, a very solid contributor who kicked some great goals
• Tommy: Loved to attack the ball and play in front, kicking showed great improvement as the year progressed, great season Tommy.
• Douggy: The master of the quick handpass who showed some genuine pace, great improvement throughout the year, well done Douggy
• Jimmy: Loves to run, compete, bounce, kick and play footy, a fantastic year Jimmy.
• Foggy: Played majority of games, however finished early for health reasons, improved throughout the year and most of all was very keen to listen and learn, well done Foggy.
• Hespy: Hard running forward with great skills who gave 100% every week, a pleasure to coach, well done Hespy.
• Big Hayds: As the season progressed so did big Hayd ’s, beautiful big long kick, keep going Hayds.
• To all the parents a huge thank-you for bringing the boys down to each training session and game day, providing oranges, goal umpriring and timekeeping. Special mention to Dennis Brestovac, Jeremy Skepper and Pete Collins who helped out throughout the year at training.

Special thanks to Leslie Eddy, our manager, who volunteered and did a great job organising rosters, pizza nights, correspondence, game day sheets etc. A tough job which you made look easy …..cheers.

Last thanks is to Mick Strahan who pretty much coached the boys alongside me all year…..massive effort at training and on game day, plus while I was away –thanks mate.

Overall it has been a very successful season and also very rewarding as a coach to see the improvement in the players.

We hope to see you all again next year.

Go the Bulldogs !
Dave Glass (Coach)

Back: Robert Butler (Coach) & Mike North (Assistant Coach)
Middle: Mason Cailes-Spence, Maxwell Williams, Logan Burns, Harrison Greenwell-Roberts, Benjamin Bates, Charles Clynk, Will Butler, James Hafford
Front: Lee Symonds, Luke Morey, Kyle North, Hudson Thomas, Darcy McDermott, Oliver Kelly, Byron Johnstone, Ashwin Trehan
Absent: Daniel Newman (Inset), Wendy Clynk (Team Manager)

It was great to see a lot of familiar faces back this year, plus some new ones. Right from the start you could see the boys had been either practicing or watching the big boys on TV and were keen try some new tricks out on the paddock.

Unfortunately Ollie ‘hand out don’t argue’ Kelly had to pull out mid-season with a bad back. However, we welcomed Byron Johnstone to the team, midway through the season.
The team was continually evolving with different players stepping up, showing off some new skill or just having belief in themselves and teammates. After a slow start adjusting to the new tackling in Year 4, they really stepped up the tackling pressure mid-season. Some of the other highlights on display included some great running, leading to space, kicking, handballing and general team work.

One of the weekly traditions the lads embraced was the team song, well sung after each match, with the opportunity to squirt the captain of the day enthusiastically anticipated and carried out.
Huge thanks goes to everyone who helped out during the season. Coaching was made that much easier when you have a great team helping out off the field. Team Manager Wendy Clynk, emails, paperwork, ground report, rosters, team sheets, just to name a few of the tasks Wendy successfully navigated each week. Assistant Coach Mike North, training, player rotation, tactics and pep talks. Parents, Year 4 White’s have a wonderful group supporting their kids and the team. Everyone pitched in with the little extras that often go unnoticed: timekeeping, goal umpire, first aid, canteen, ground setup, bbq, training and the all-important oranges.

Thanks also to the other Year 4 coaches and parents, from the Blue and Red teams, who helped make Wednesday night trainings enjoyable, not only for the young kids but some of the ‘big’ kids reminiscing about their footy and goal kicking prowess.

Look forward to seeing you all next year. Go the Bulldogs!!
Robert Butler (Coach)

Well what a year it s been. From the first game to the last I am sure you will all agree the boys improvement has been outstanding.

First of all I d like to thank the great bunch of parents for their no fuss approach to the rostered duties and passionate support from the sidelines. There is nothing better to not only see the enjoyment on the boys faces but hear the roar from the boundary line absolutely brilliant.

I know we are not playing for points but the boys and parents knew the exact score and recall a game at Gairloch Oval where the crowd noise was so tremendous I thought, I was at Patterson s Stadium. Since that game we taught (with the help of Jake Simpson) the boys the club song. There were some heartfelt renditions over the year.

Secondly to my assistant coaches Andrew Kelly & Greg Collins thanks for all your help throughout the year at both training and game day. Running the board and bench at the carnival is a thankless task but was completed without fuss.

To my wife Jade, thanks so much for organising the year. The Team Manager role is critical to the whole Team s success and I am sure you ll agree timely, concise communication is the key.

To the Boys in Year 4 Blue Well Done!! I am so proud our all the boys how they applied themselves to training and on match days. At training this year we focused a lot on handball, kicking, ruck and tackling drills. This paid off in spades as we had many examples of quality ball movements by hand and by no means least we (in my view) were the hardest tackling side around.

What I hoped the boys learned over the course of the year apart from mateship, teamwork and skills was the value of the Bulldogs jumper and jacket. The Booragoon Bulldogs is a fantastic club run by volunteers, without this we wouldn t have experienced such great moments.

Finally on a personal note I wanted the thanks the boys from both Year 4 sides. They are a talented group that bonded so well over the year. It was a privilege to coach them and I welcome the opportunity next year.

Well its the end of another season, thanks to all for your help and to the boys WELL DONE!! Enjoy your summer break and look forward to seeing you and a few mates all next season. Go Bulldogs!!

Richard Mulroney (Coach)

This year, like last year, saw an enrollment of approximately 27 boys, keen on a game of proper footy for the first time since most of them commenced playing Auskick 3 or 4 years ago.

The difficult decision was made once again to split into 2 teams to ensure that all of the boys could have a game every week rather than either having to have boys miss out on a game of football, or run 10 man interchange benches for every game.

I have once again had the honour of coaching the Booragoon White side whilst Richard Mulroney, who with his lovely wife, Jade, handled most of the organisational aspects for both teams, took control of the year 4 Blue side.

As was the case last year, the year 4 White boys were a pleasure to coach and showed amazing development over the course of the year.

On a Wednesday night training, we trained the 2 teams together which helped to continue the camaraderie of all the boys (even though they were split into 2 teams) as players of the Booragoon Bulldogs Junior Football Club Year 4 Age Group.

This year saw the football become much more willing with tackling now being available to the boys. It is fair to say that most of the boys took to the physical aspects of the game like ducks to water and thoroughly enjoyed the fact that they were playing football more like their AFL heroes.

Over the course of the season we were extremely competitive in most games, the only problem being that on most occasions we were only able to field 12 players and therefore had to even up with the other side over the course of the season. This usually saw us borrowing 1 or 2 players from our opposition for every game with mixed results.

At various stages, however, all the boys shone and the most pleasing aspect of any game was when we were able to see genuine teamwork support for each other.

We saw a couple of new players join the Club this year, and without exception, they were welcomed by the old stagers , fitted in extremely well and were a pleasure to coach.

From the first bounce to the culmination of the season there was considerable improvement and development by all players and in their ability to hold their positions, use their teamwork and play disciplined footy.

This was never more apparent than in the performance of the boys at the Lightning Carnival held at East Fremantle Oval on Sunday 31 August 2014. For the carnival, we combined the 2 teams so that every boy who wanted to play in the carnival was able to be involved. This left us with a large interchange bench and the bench rotations were
extremely well handled by Greg Collins and Andrew Kelly while the boys were extremely well coached by Richard Mulroney on the day.

It was an absolute joy to sit back and watch the boys come together and play some wonderful football. They were undefeated after the qualifying rounds of the carnival having won 3 games in a row, but unfortunately narrowly missed out on the final on percentage. We were left in little doubt after watching the first half of the final that we would likely have been very competitive in the final.

The calibre of the boys and their families was even further brought to light when both teams combined to enjoy a lovely sundowner on the Sunday afternoon. It is quite clear that although the boys come from a large range of different backgrounds and schools, some great mateship is developing and we can only hope that they will continue to play their football together for many years to come.

Coaching a football side has its moments but I have found it to be a wonderfully rewarding experience. There is a lot more to it, however, than just turning up and coaching the boys and a lot of the extra stuff that needs to be handled was done with great aplomb by the Booragoon Whites team.

Firstly, a big thanks to Karen Ganza who took on the job of manager of the White team when the two teams were split at the start of the season. Karen carried out all of the organisation, kept everyone informed as to what was going on by email and made sure we fulfilled our roster obligations, the jumpers were available, that the boys had oranges at half time, the goal umpires were always present and, most importantly, reminded me where to put my name on the match day report sheet
at the end of the game. Thanks to Karen for her fantastic efforts over the course of the season.

Thanks also to our wonderful assistant coaches, Richard Power and Geoff Cooper, who on the 1 or 2 occasions where I was unavailable to coach on match day, took over the coaching of the side and also assisted during mid week training sessions.

Thanks to Emma Walsh who donned the extremely fashionable first aid jacket which she became very fond of over the course of the season. Her efforts to identify the deficiencies in our first aid kit and ensure that this was upgraded were fantastic, and over the course of the season, she was quite busy dealing with a number of life-threatening superficial injuries to our players, all of whom she was inevitably able to return to the paddock a short time later.

Thanks also to Richard and Jade Mulroney for all of their organisation over the course of the year which allowed me to have a more pure coaching role over the course of the season.

To the parents, it was a pleasure to coach your children and to get to know some of you over the course of the season. I think we are blessed to have quality people involved at the football club who were uncomplaining when it was their turn to produce oranges, put on the mad scientist goal umpire s jacket (apart from John Waters who was simply too big for it), keeping time and operating the lame duck siren at Karoonda, and just generally supporting their children throughout the season.

Thanks once again to the Booragoon Junior Football Club for providing the opportunity to coach again this year.

Angus Castley (Coach)