Almost 10 years ago, Heath Younie and Matthew Wright were teammates, running alongside one another for the North Adelaide Roosters.
This weekend, the pair return to Prospect Oval again… just in a different set of colours.
Crows SANFL coach Younie notched 183 games for the Roosters and Adelaide’s reserves’ captain Wright won three premierships as a junior.
But all of that goes out the window for four quarters this Saturday, with Adelaide looking to lock up second place on the SANFL ladder.
Speaking to AFC Media, Wright laughed about the football journey going full circle.
“It’s funny how it works, he looked after me when I was playing, being one of the older players, looking after one of the kids,” Wright said.
“Now it’s a similar sort of thing, he’s done a fair bit in footy now and is helping me while I am just starting that journey through the coaching ranks.”
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Although Wright’s journey to the Crows SANFL side may be well-known, few would know how Younie ended up at the helm.
A teacher during his playing days with the Roosters, the former West Coast Eagles rookie landed the job as North’s Under-18’s coach upon retiring in 2010.
Younie joined Adelaide’s development program two years later in 2012 and in 2014, was named the inaugural coach of the Crows’ SANFL side.
“As I progressed through playing late in my career, I found a real passion to coach, and what better way to join education and football together than coaching,” Younie said.
“I’m in a privileged position to work in an industry that I am passionate about and combine the two loves of mine.”
Younie gets great satisfaction from working with the younger players and seeing them flourish.
“I get a real kick out of seeing young guys work so hard and then achieving,” he said.
“I love going through the process and being a small part of the journey, watching these players develop in front of your eyes, it gives you a real buzz.”
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Wright’s passion for developing players is similar.
“Having played a bit of AFL and SANFL footy, a lot of information is gained over time and I can pass that knowledge on to the younger blokes starting their career,” he said.
“If they can take that knowledge and understand it early, it is going to help them progress and climb the ranks quicker
“I really enjoy giving back to the younger boys, watching them start their careers and hopefully see them go on to play for 10-12 years at the highest level.”
Both the captain and coach said they were pleased with the brand of footy the SANFL Crows are playing in 2019 and that the team is being rewarded for its efforts.
They’ll be hoping to maintain that when they take on the reigning premiers this Saturday afternoon at 2.10pm.
