Tara Murray
One of Altona’s greatest ever players will take the coaching reins of the club’s Hockey Victoria women’s premier league squad this season.
The Seagulls announced late last week that Danielle Schubach had been appointed coach with Stephanie Young as her assistant coach.
Schubach replaces Ben Newell who coached the side the past four years after he decided to step away from the role.
In the club’s announcement, it said that both Schubach’s and Young’s hockey records speak for themselves.
“At the time of her retirement, Steph was the women’s premier league games record holder at Altona with 203 games, and is still the leading goalscorer with 104 goals, at an incredible average of a goal better than one every two games.
“Dan surpassed Steph as the current games record holder – many of those games played together – and also has one of the most impressive hockey resumes in Victoria.
“As a sample of some of her on-field achievements, she was selected in the midfield in the Victorian Vipers All-Star team over their 26 year history, captained the Vipers to win the Australia Hockey League in 2012, was part of the 2017 winning team, as well as represented the Hockeyroos on multiple tours between 2009 and 2013.”
Schubach said she was looking forward to the opportunity.
“It should be a good challenge,” she said. “It [coaching] was always in the back of my mind once I was done playing.
“It happened that our old coach had stood down… I just had a baby so I wasn’t going to be playing in the early stages of the season so I put my hand up.
Schubach said Young was one of her best friends and that they had played the majority of their hockey together throughout the years.
The Seagulls have already started pre-season training.
Schubach said the aim this season was to ensure that they didn’t finish in the bottom four, with the bottom four teams to be relegated at the end of the season.
The side finished last season in 13th.
“We’ve got a similar side to last year,” she said. “We have not picked up anyone new at this stage, but we have a few players coming back that haven’t played the last few years.
“It’s exciting and it will be a big challenge. We’ve had a good first two sessions and had a really good turn out last night.
“We’re looking forward to getting into it.”
