BALWYN’s Daniel Donati has been appointed coach of the EFL’s senior interleague side for the 2014 Victorian Metropolitan Representative Football carnival.
Donati will lead the EFL – ranked second by AFL Victoria earlier this year – against the top-ranked Victorian Amateur Football Association (VAFA) in the carnival’s main event on Saturday 29 March at VISY Park.
The Tigers’ dual premiership coach is ‘extremely honoured’ to have been selected.
‘To be able to coach the best players in the comp against the best of the VAFA is something I’m really looking forward to,’ he said.
‘I loved getting involved with rep footy as a player. It was always a privilege to get asked and I always put my hand up if I was fit.’
Donati, who played with VAFA club Old Xaverians before stints with Noble Park and Football Geelong’s Lara, will pick his squad before Christmas.
The intention then is to train once a week for five weeks in the lead-up to the carnival.
‘We’ll mix it up. We might even get away for a weekend for a bit of bonding, which is what the VAFA does very well,’ Donati said.
‘I really want to make it an enjoyable environment and make sure players get the most out of their interleague experience.’
While the 36-year-old will try to pick the best balanced team he can, he is looking to include plenty of quality, high-skilled midfielders.
‘Fast footy is the key these days. If we surround our key talls with the best users of the footy, I’ve got no doubt we will have a sharp side,’ he said.
‘Most importantly, I want guys who want to be there and want to play well.’
For the past two years, Donati has coached against dozens of classy and talented EFL footballers. Yet this time, all parties will be unified, something the Balwyn coach is looking forward to.
‘As a player, you play against some really good players from good sides. But in the interleague change room, you sit next to them, rather than wonder how to stop them from the opposite change room. It’s a good feeling,’ he said.
‘For example, Ryan Mullet [Vermont] sitting next to Rennie Gilchrist [Balwyn] is a mouth-watering proposition for me as a coach. ‘
The last time the EFL won a senior interleague game was back in 2004 when it defeated the Diamond Valley Football League by one point. Donati captained the EFL that day, with East Ringwood’s Marcus Buzaglo providing support as vice-captain.
A decade later, Donati will again have Buzaglo by his side in an Interleague match, this time as an assistant coach.
Donati’s opposite number on the day will be Simon Lethlean, a dual Old Xaverians premiership coach, five-time Old Xaverians premiership player and, above all, a former teammate of Donati’s.
The EFL’s front man is looking forward to going head-to-head with his premiership teammate and friend.
‘I speak to him every now and then. He is very organised and just a nice bloke,’ Donati said.
‘He’s coached flags and played in flags, so he has all the attributes to coach at that level.’
The VAFA’s No. 1 ranking does not sit well with Donati, who is motivated and passionate to wrestle the status off the opposition.
‘I’ve played in both competitions, but the EFL has always been the stronger one. The VAFA has just got up when it’s come to interleague,’ Donati said,
‘If we come with the right attitude though, we’re going to be hard to beat.’
Six competitions will take part in the three-match carnival, where all games will be played on the same day in late March. It will be the first all-encompassing carnival since 1999.
Based on the results of one-off representative games over the past few years, metropolitan leagues have been seeded one-to-six by AFL Victoria. Promotion and relegation will apply to all matches to avoid leagues playing against each other in consecutive years.
A Vic Metro senior team will then be selected and pitted against the Peter Knights’ led Vic Country No.1 side in July.
VIC METRO REPRESENTATIVE FIXTURE (Saturday 29 March at VISY Park)
Game 1: Western Region Football League (5th) v Southern Football League (6th) at 11am Game 2: Essendon District Football League (3rd) v Northern Football League (4th) at 1.10pm Game 3: Victorian Amateur Football Association (1st) v Eastern Football League (2nd) at 3.20pm