A focus on youth is the aim for Barooga going forward according to 2023 senior coach Luke Jarjoura.
Announced as the Hawks’ new mentor recently, Jarjoura aims to have the club flying high in Murray Football League once again.
“It’s an exciting time for the club,” Jarjoura said.
“We’re implementing a very extensive junior development program that will take us not only into 2023 but into the next decade.
“We’ve got a very young group of kids that are in their developmental stage that have got an abundance of talent, so the club’s in a pretty good spot in terms of juniors.
“We just need to recruit a couple of bigger bodies to make the club competitive and protect those kids.”
Having coached at Numurkah, Balmain (Sydney), Parramatta (Sydney) and holding an assistant role at Ainslie in the North East Australian Football League, the Hawks coach will need to draw on all his experience to help the team move up the ladder.
A tough year for the side, Barooga parted ways with playing coach Jackson Trengove earlier this season, with Tony Tranter holding the role in a caretaker capacity after his departure.
Result-wise the club’s senior football side has had a difficult two years, finishing 10th in 2021 (3-10) and ninth (4-14) in 2022.
Barooga committee member Jamie Robinson said Jarjoura’s decorated playing and coaching career would help get the club back on track.
“Fortunately, he moved into town six months ago, so he’s got good relationships already with the players,” Robinson said.
“We’re very confident that he’s going to help us bounce back pretty quickly.”
A non-playing coach, Jarjoura admitted pulling on the boots was no longer an option, with a passion for coaching and developing young players keeping him around the game.
“As a senior coach I’ve always invested heavily in the juniors,” he said.
“My philosophy is you’re old enough if you’re good enough.”
This new focus on junior development is similar to what Hawks supporters have seen at rival Cobram this season, with the Tigers’ local stars taking them all the way to the grand final.
“Our neighbours across the river have been very successful with developing their juniors over a sustained period of time,” Jarjoura said.
“With all home grown talent they’ve done an exceptional job of turning that club around and turning it into the force that it is today.
“So if we can emulate that or even take it that extra step further that’s our goal.
“There’s a lot of things going on in and around the area of Barooga at the moment that will make Barooga not just a destination club, but a destination town in the future.”