Tara Murray
New Sunbury Kangaroos coach Graeme Bennett is excited by the challenge at the Gisborne and District Cricket Association McIntyre Cup club.
The Kangaroos announced that Bennett had been appointed playing coach for next season.
Bennett said the prospect of coaching the Kangaroos was something that he felt was the right move for him.
“It’s really exciting,” he said. “I knew that when I’m excited about something when I started dreaming about it and I was dreaming about it before I was appointed.
“This is the first time as senior coach and I want to try and lift the team from outside the finals and into finals and hopefully go all the way.”
Bennett has played at a number of clubs across the Victorian Turf Cricket Association and other competitions, but this will be his first experience in the GDCA.
He said while he has a few connections at the connected football club, there hadn’t been any connection with the cricket club before.
Bennett said for him the main driver for him taking the role was the opportunity to help the club become a finals team.
The Kangaroos finished eighth last season with three wins from 10 completed matches.
“I’m always looking to improve myself and others, so that was a big driver,” he said. “The club has a good talent pool of younger kids in their early 20s.
“I’m excited to work with those kids and with the talent and look to build that up.
“I’m 33 and only have three or four years left in me. I want to be able to build these kids up and hopefully one of them will take over from me and take the club even further which would be amazing.”
Bennett said he would talk to a couple of mates about coming across with him, but conceded it would be tricky due to the rules about player payments in the GDCA.
Bennett’s arrival at the club comes as the club is aiming to expand its junior program.
The club fielded its first ever junior team last season, an under-11s, and this season are hoping to have under-11s and under-13s.
Bennett said it’s exciting for the club.
“Hopefully it will grow into under-15s and under-17s and more senior cricketers in the future,” he said.
“It will take some time to develop the program.”
