Interview by Josh Partridge
Footage by Craig George
Footage by Craig George
Category
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SportsTranscript
00:00 I'm here with North Launceston coach Brad Cox-Goudreau ahead of the TSL Grand Final on Saturday.
00:04 Brad, you've obviously played in a fair few Grand Finals yourself, I suppose.
00:07 What are some of the advice you're going to be giving to the younger players heading into the big day?
00:11 Yeah, obviously this is my ninth Senior Grand Final in the State League, so yeah,
00:15 to some, the experience is probably an understatement.
00:18 So, I'll just really enjoy the game, really enjoy the day, the build-up.
00:22 You know, that's probably been the big message this week, is enjoy what you're doing
00:25 and don't overplay the game in your head, because at the end of the day,
00:28 it's just another game and you've got to do what you've done all year.
00:31 So, really enjoy it, embrace it, because you never know when you're going to get the chance to
00:35 have another crack at it, and that's probably been the main message,
00:37 just really enjoy it, embrace it and don't take it for granted.
00:42 As I said, mate, you've played in a few Premierships, I suppose.
00:44 From a personal perspective, is there a story or a favourite one behind one of the five?
00:50 They're all unique.
00:53 You know, when you talk about story and the thing behind that,
00:57 you probably look at 2015, I would have thought, and the adversity we had to go through.
01:01 We obviously lost Daniel Roozendahl to suspension in the preliminary final.
01:04 We lost Tom Bennett in the preliminary final, last minute he tore his Achilles
01:08 and we lost Jay Lockhart at the start of the final series.
01:11 So, we went in as underdogs, we were playing Going All-Kill,
01:13 lost twice all year and touching teams up, and we lost our first final to Burnie
01:18 and things like that.
01:19 So, when you talk about adversity and a good story, that's probably the one,
01:22 but you know, you can look at all of them and they've all got their unique stories.
01:26 2014, our first one, and 2017 we bounced back after losing one.
01:29 And 2018, we went back to back, and then obviously 2019,
01:33 we had to go play in Hobart when we had hosting rights and it was repeated.
01:37 So, yeah, there's plenty of stories, but yeah, if you went through adversity in 2015,
01:41 probably the one.
01:42 You obviously talked about it all year, mate.
01:43 You've got a whole heap of exciting young, new players, I suppose.
01:47 How exciting is the prospect of them potentially adding to the North
01:49 Ancestor Premiership history that you've had in the past?
01:51 Yeah, to say I haven't thought about that fact would be a lie.
01:55 I've got it in my head, the picture in my head of these young guys celebrating.
01:59 Yeah, it warms my heart, just the work they've put in and the buy-in
02:03 they've given me into my program that I've tried to create is something pretty special.
02:07 So, for them to get the ultimate reward is something I'm craving.
02:11 And probably more, not thinking about winning one myself,
02:15 but having them to experience the joy of winning would probably be top of it,
02:20 personally for me, and just watching their faces light up would be, yeah,
02:25 a cheer on top.
02:26 And you've got a couple of young guns, mate, I suppose.
02:28 Who are some of the ones that are really primed for grand final footing?
02:31 Yeah, no, it's a good question.
02:33 There's a few of them.
02:34 I think Blades Foolsburger, the way he's been building this year,
02:36 he's really building himself into one of the best mids in the comp.
02:39 He's only 20 years old and he's getting better and better each day he goes by.
02:43 And he's big and strong, so North Hobart, Kingborough has really suited him,
02:46 so I think he'll be fine.
02:47 And I think Declan Chugson, just come back from his injury,
02:50 hasn't missed a beat, so he's been super.
02:52 And obviously he's the son of another premiership player in Mark.
02:54 And someone that probably doesn't get spoken about,
02:57 but he comes back from the dead with his Oscar Van Damme.
03:00 I've rode him for a number of years and his class is second to none
03:04 and the way he uses the ball and his decision making,
03:05 some of the best I've seen.
03:06 So, they're three, but I mean, if I wanted to be honest,
03:10 we could probably go through all of them and spend 20 minutes if you wanted to.
03:13 But yeah, they're probably three to stand out.
03:15 Too easy, Brad.
03:16 Well, best of luck and hopefully you get the chocolates on Saturday.
03:18 Thanks, mate. Appreciate it.
03:19 [BLANK_AUDIO]