Jackas name McQuillen as Sheehy successor

AJAX Football Club last week announced that Leigh McQuillen would succeed premiership-winning coach Bernie Sheehy, who stepped down from the role at the end of the 2012 season.

The 34-year-old will lead the Jackas in their second consecutive year in Premier B grade in 2013 and said there is a lot to like about the current playing group.

“I felt like I could bring something new to the club,” McQuillen told The AJN.

“The biggest thing for me is the age of the playing list, knowing that there is so much upside to it.”

McQuillen was most recently a senior assistant coach at former Premier A grade side Old Trinity, after coaching at several country and metropolitan clubs.

“It was a fantastic year [with Old Trinity],” McQuillen said.

“It gave me a great backing on how the competition played, how fast it is and what style of football you need to play to win games.”

AJAX will come up against Old Trinity next season and McQuillen said he is looking forward to the prospect of coaching against his old side.

“They got relegated and it brings interesting things to next season,” McQuillen said.

“I’m looking forward to it. I left on very good terms and I’ve got a lot of good friends there.

“I’ve got a very good feel on their weaknesses, which is the key to us, so I’ll be exploiting every single one of them when we play them.”

In the coaching world, McQuillen is only a youngster, but sees the AJAX job as a starting point for his future ­ambitions.

“In coaching terms, I probably am [young],” McQuillen said.

“When I found out that I got the job, I couldn’t wait to start with the club and I’m excited about everything that’s ahead of us.

“I do have aspirations to get as high as I can and this will be a huge launching pad.”

One of the most important things for McQuillen was that his wife and daughter approved of his decision to coach AJAX and he is grateful for his family’s support.

“It’s a big family thing for us,” McQuillen said.

“My wife is Canadian and when she came across and saw football for the first time and saw how passionate I was about it, she supported it from day one.

“She loves coming [to games] and my daughter loves coming and the support has been fantastic.”

Ashley Shenker

Photo: Mark Feldy