Shepparton United has turned to one of its former captains to spearhead its football revival, with the club unveiling Duane Hueston as its senior coach for the next two seasons.
Taking over from Paul Serra, who departed the club after one year in charge due to work commitments, Hueston steps into the role after mentoring United’s under-15 side this past season.
This appointment comes after an extensive searching process, as the club looks to rebound after a disastrous 2022 campaign that yielded one victory and the Goulburn Valley League wooden spoon.
The beginning of a new era for Shepparton United, Hueston said the opportunity to coach the seniors at his “home club” was something he simply could not turn down.
“I had a call from the club a couple of weeks ago just asking if I’d be interested in taking that next step after I had a really enjoyable year coaching juniors at United,” Hueston said.
“With the age of my three boys at the moment, I just thought now would be the best time to have a go at it and see if it’s something that is of interest.
“When you sit back and think about it, to be able to coach your home club, the club you grew up playing with, it is such an honour and I cannot wait to give back to the club that gave me a start in the game.”
Although this will be Hueston’s first senior role at Goulburn Valley League level, he is no stranger to pulling the strings.
Taking on his first coaching role in 2008 with Echuca United, Hueston has mixed mentoring with his playing exploits for much of his career, with his most recent venture being at Shepparton East in 2021.
Over the journey Hueston has been renowned for his ability to develop young talent, a quality he believed made him a standout candidate for the position at United.
“When I coached Echuca United we were a very young group and we focused very heavily on development and growth, and it was very similar when I took over at Shepparton East as it was all about recruiting locals back to the club,” he said.
“So that’s probably why United saw me as the right person to take on the job, I also worked with the juniors last year, so they thought I’d be somebody that could connect with the young playing group.
“I wouldn’t say United is at a spot where it needs to rebuild, it’s just with such a young group it needs somebody to nurture that talent, be in touch with the players and with my background I’m confident I’ll be able to get the best out of them.”
Shepparton United’s list is one filled with young talent, with the likes of skipper Kyle Clarke, Kaedyn Napier and Sheldon Bogdan set to give Hueston plenty to work with.
Being around the club in 2022, he said he managed to catch a glimpse of the senior team in action and was impressed with a lot of what he saw.
“I was able to see a couple of games by luck last year and you could not question the endeavour, the commitment and the attitude of the group,” he said.
“So if we can harness that stuff and improve on areas that might have been not great for us last season that will give us a good grounding.
“I want to give the guys a bit of ownership on how they want to go about things and improve, because on talent alone I know we will be able to play some exciting football.”
As for his expectations for the upcoming season, Hueston said it would not just be about the wins and losses, but building a platform for sustained success.
“We want to put a side on the park that is competitive,” he said
“We want to be in games of football at three-quarter time, we really want to make sure we are putting our best foot forward and we’re still engaged right until the end.
“We also want to improve on little aspects of the game, whether it’s our skill level under pressure or ability to win the ball, we want to build a game plan and culture that will bring players back to the club.”