Tara Murray
A love of the game keeps Jarrod Dixon coming back each week to coach.
Dixon on Sunday coached his 500th game of football, as he led the Sunbury Kangaroos top under-17 team out onto the field.
The majority of those 500 games have come at the Kangaroos, having coached at both the senior and junior clubs.
He has also coached some games at Keilor. The milestone doesn’t include games as an assistant coach.
Dixon said he had tried to keep the milestone quiet but it had gotten out.
“I didn’t even realise that it was coming up,” he said. “I wasn’t coming but we decided to do a court earlier this year and realised.
“I put a big price on loyalty. I love the game and I love learning.”
Making Dixon’s milestone game was that his son Lachlan returned to the field from injury.
“He hurt his knee in round one and was told it was a three to six month injury,” Dixon said.
“He worked really hard on his rehab and was cleared two weeks ago. He came back for my 500th game and kicked the first goal as well.
Dixon said for him watching the junior players develop into not only players, but young men. He said he just wanted them all to get their best out of each player.
“You want them to go on and play in the senior program,” he said. “They develop as quality people and I can’t think of anyone that hasn’t done that.
“You put a lot of work in and I’m now coaching sons of players I’ve coached.”
Dixon, who is also currently an assistant coach at Keilor, said there were a lot of great players that he has coached.
He said there’s a number of stars at Keilor but from a Kangaroos standout highlighted one player.
“Matt Welsh is a quality player in the RDFL [Riddell District Football League] community,” he said. “When they won the grand final a few years ago, there were about eight or nine players that went through the junior program.
“It’s good to see them play footy.
“Riley Draicchio, Cam Hildebrand and Liam Jeffries have played senior footy this year after coming through the juniors.
“It doesn’t matter what level they get to. At junior level it’s about a kids development.
“One kid could be bottom six one year the next they are better.”
Dixon said Keilor coach Mick McGuane continues to teach him new stuff every week and once he stops learning he’ll step back from coaching.
For the Kangaroos, they enter finals this week. The club this season fielded two under-17 sides for the first time.
“It’s a big risk,” Dixon said. “We have 46 under-17s.
“There’s been no negativity between the teams and we all train together like a senior program’
“It’s a different challenge.
“We finished second in a strong A grade competition. It’s going to be a hard finals campaign, but it’s exciting.”
