Seb Ross has barely been in the role a fortnight, but the new Colac co-coach is quickly getting a handle on what leading a local club involves.
As K rock Football revealed exclusively on October 4, the former St Kilda star has stepped into the position vacated by Rowan McSparron.
And Ross has quickly had to get down to business.
“I’ve been on the phone more than ever… I’ve almost been thrown in the deep end a little bit,” Ross said.
“But, fortunately, I’ve got Brent Langdon, and Joffy Simpkin, and a few others that are very well-versed and experienced in the GFL and all the other leagues around town.
“So, they’re really putting in some hard work.”
Ross, who played 211 games for the Saints and twice won the Trevor Barker Award as best-and-fairest, is confident Colac has the list to return to finals quickly.
The Tigers watched on in September for the first time since 2016.
“Hopefully, we can formalise the list in the next month or so, and with that, keep a lot of the guys that are already there,” Ross said.
“We feel like we’ve got the main crux of the list there.
“They just dropped out of finals last year. But, prior to that, they’ve been a really high-performing side.
“We like it’s all there. If we can add a player or two, we’re pretty well placed.”
After spending 13 years in the AFL system, Ross, who has three young children with wife Marnie, admits the thought of moving onto the next stage of life was “quite scary”.
“Which it certainly was for me,” he said.
“We made the move down to Geelong straight away, so I think the move has forced us to get going with planning the next stage of our lives.
“And that’s one thing Colac have been for me… they’ve been there the whole way through, and it’s not all big and scary like I thought it might have been.
“I’m really excited. My eldest daughter has started school down here (and) had a great first week, and I’ve got a lot of family down here.”
The Horsham product also looks forward to embracing the atmosphere of community football.
“There are a few things as you grow up as a kid that you really love about footy kids that you don’t get at AFL level,” Ross said.
“That’s what really drew me to the Colac footy club. As soon as I walked in there, I felt like I did when I was a little kid.
“It’s what I always remembered how footy clubs operated.”
X: @krockfootball
