Tara Murray
Aaron Kite is stepping down as East Sunbury coach, but he won’t be lost to the Essendon District Football League division 2 club.
The Thunder announced on Wednesday that Kite had made the decision to step down from coaching due to family commitments and the expected arrival of twins.
Kite took on the role as coach as the Thunder re-entered the senior competition after not having teams in 2022.
Thunder president Ronnie Paoly said they completely understand Kite’s decision and that family always comes first.
“It was a big decision,” he said. “We had a good old chat about it.
“I had an inclination as soon as he was having twins that it might be too much. We need someone that is 100 per cent committed.
“He came to the decision that he is happy with and we’re rapt that he will be staying at the club as a player and assistant coach.”
Paoly, who has twins himself, said Kite would have remained coach if his family situation didn’t change.
Paoly said they were hoping that with the stress of not having to coach, they will be able to see some more of what Kite can do on the field next year.
“He was averaging 4.2 goals a game at Glenroy,” he said. “That would be huge for the young kids in the forward line if we could get that.
“Hopefully we’ll get to see the Aaron Kite we all know on field next year.”
The Thunder are yet to get a win this season with Paoly saying there were a lot of good signs on the field.
He said they look at what Keilor Park has done since coming out of recession, including winning a premiership.
“I’m bullish and the team is staying together,” he said. “We’ve had commitment from players.
“Looking at the list, it’s a great list.
“The players want to play for East Sunbury… They aren’t going to gel in a month or two months.
“With a season under their belts and another full pre-season, it will be a different East Sunbury next year.”
The Thunder played Coburg Districts this Saturday with two games remaining after that.
Paoly said they were hoping that they could finish on a winning note.
“The pressure is off and everybody can have some fun,” he said. “You never know what will happen, we want to spoil some teams’ chances to play finals.”
