One of country football’s most decorated stars is returning to the Murray region, with Kristan Height set to don the black and white in 2023.
Boasting a successful senior football career spanning more than two decades, the three-time league best-and-fairest and 2001 Echuca premiership winner will appear for Murray league club Moama when not on assistant coaching duties for VFL club Box Hill.
Height holds a special place in the pantheon of country footballers, the only player to ever win all three of the Ovens and Murray League’s Morris Medal (2014), the Goulburn Valley League’s Morrison Medal (2010) and the Bendigo Football League’s Michelsen Medal (2016).
Add premierships with Sandhurst in 2016 and Victorian Amateur Football Association division two club Whitefriars in 2019, and the 39-year-old holds one of the most impressive CVs in community footy.
Height explained that his connection to former teammates and family in the region made Moama the perfect fit for his return to country football after several seasons in Melbourne.
“Moama was a good choice because of the Sheldon guys, and mainly so I could bring the kids and family up on weekends to visit the farm and Mum and Dad, which is something we’ve missed out on the past couple of years,” Height said.
“I’ve grown up with Tom, Jack and (Moama coach) Sam Sheldon, those three guys and Axel Childs are still playing footy whereas a lot of my mates have retired. It’s good to have some mates still involved in the game.”
Following his 2019 triumph, the 39-year-old said he was keen to compete after COVID-19 and work commitments forced him away from footy — this included a stint as Hawthorn’s runner in 2022 and his current role as director of sports at Whitefriars College.
“Last year I was working in Melbourne, so I couldn’t play,” Height said.
“Essentially, I wanted to finish my footy career without COVID-19 being the reason.
“I know Moama have been there or thereabouts the last two or three years and I’m hopeful to come in and perform a role for the team, whatever Sam and Ken (Sheldon) think is the best position for me.
“I’m excited about working with some of the kids and passing on a bit of my knowledge.”
The prospect of linking up with former coach Ken Sheldon, who is heavily involved in the coaching set-up at the Pies, is also a bonus.
“Ken was my first senior coach, essentially,” Height said.
“He put some time and effort into me and some other mates from school, which included Josh Maddox, Rhys Archard, Scott McGlone, all these other blokes who started around that era.
“We were only 17 around that time and he really took us under his wing, he gave us senior opportunities and we won the premiership in 2001.”
While his opportunities to play will be dictated by his duties as midfield coach at Box Hill, Height will be another vital cog down forward and in the Pies’ engine room, as the club chases its first flag since 2010.