PREMIUM
Sport

Euroa Cricket Club to take new direction for 2024-25 season

Up against it: Euroa’s Scott Hamilton endured a difficult season in charge at the Magpies. Photo by Rechelle Zammit

Euroa Cricket Club will undertake a change of management at the conclusion of the 2023-24 season.

The Magpies are in the market for a new coach, confirming news that current boss Scott Hamilton will not continue in the role once the Cricket Shepparton season concludes.

It has been a difficult run for Hamilton's men — no two ways about that — in languishing at the ladder's foot for large swathes of the year.

A breakthrough moment finally arrived in Euroa's most recent Haisman Shield outing when its crop of young bowlers put a foot through the Northerners order to register its first win, escaping bottom spot in the process.

Hamilton considers this time right to take a new path, though results on the pitch have played virtually no factor in the decision.

"At the end of the day, (stepping down) was for a whole host of reasons, one being the commitment level I could offer with family life and young kids," Hamilton said.

"With a busy family, enjoying those parts of my life when the kids are young was more important.

"(Euroa was) keen to have me stay on, but it's important the club gets someone in who has the additional time in their day to contribute to their development.

"It wasn't that I fell out of love with the job, but I needed to be at home a bit more often."

Hamilton did criticise his own production with the bat, having notched 155 runs this year at an average of 14.09.

Following his mutually amicable departure as coach, Hamilton intends to stay on as a senior figure with less on his plate from a cricketing standpoint.

"I was committing a lot of time elsewhere in the coaching and development spaces, so I wasn't at the level I would personally like to be," Hamilton said.

"In a playing capacity, I probably wasn't producing the results I needed to, but it's going to be exciting for the club with a new face in charge.

"My primary focus is to be one of the players who can contribute with the bat.

"By no means was there any angst or untoward feeling.’’

Euroa president Carl Norton paid tribute to the outgoing skipper.

“We’ve had good off-field success and the club’s in a good position financially,” Norton said.

“Hopefully, we will get some candidates who will help transfer the off-field success to the on-field, with the help of Scott and others.

“(Scott) has been brilliant and I wanted him to stick around, but it’s a lot to commit to.

“He speaks the young players’ language. He’s a great guy to be with and they all respond to that.”

Euroa concludes its Haisman Shield season with trips to Tatura for a two-day fixture at Howley Oval on February 24 and March 2.