By Oliver Lees
Less than a year after joining Woodend-Hesket as a recruited player, Meg Grbac has been named the Hawks’ playing coach for the 2022 Riddell District Netball League season.
The defender said she was excited to take on the opportunity.
“Coaching is something I’ve wanted to get into for a whole and it just felt like the right timing,” she said.
“The club is in a really great position across all the netball teams. Everyone has been so supportive of me”
Grbac said she and her teammates were shocked when they heard Carly Arkinstall had decided to step away from the head coaching position.
Arkinstall helped steer the club to their best finish in years.
They tallied six wins, three losses and a draw to sit in fifth place as the season wrapped up after 10 games.
Both Grbac and Arkinstall were named in the RDNL’s Team of the Year and Grbac became the first Woodend player to claim the league’s highest netball honour, the Ryan Medal.
“I can’t speak more highly of her [Arkinstall],” Grbac said.
“She was always really encouraging last year, so it’s a bit of a disappointment.
“Coaching is a challenging role. I’ve been lucky enough that I’ve seen and played with some other playing coaches so I can definitely take something out of what they’ve done.”
Grbac has previously held coaching positions at her alma mater Penleigh Essendon Grammar School and at Victoria University with the Flames.
She said next season the focus will be adding consistency to their game.
“Last year was [a] completely new side, so I think we just need to continue to build,” she said.
“A lot of us hadn’t played or even knew each other, I stepped into the team a few days before round one.
“I just want to continue to build those relationships and I’m confident we have a good group returning next year.”
