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COACHING PROFILE
LEAH BLAYNEY
Former Matilda, current assistant coach
at Western Sydney Wanderers FC and the
Football NSW Institute
Leah Blayney has an amazing wealth of
football knowledge and playing experience.
Combine that with a teaching qualification
and you have a perfect building block for a
fruitful coaching career.
Q: Have you always been drawn to coaching beyond
your playing days, and who enticed you to consider
coaching?
A: I always enjoyed individual sessions with young
aspiring players but never considered taking it
on as a full-time career aspiration. When I could
no longer play due to injury, a mentor of mine
encouraged me to make an appearance at a
regional tournament, meet the players, speak
about my playing experiences etc. I was asked
to stay and watch and give any advice. I simply
loved working with this group; I stayed with them
through the tournament. I ended up coaching
them for the following 3 seasons!
Q: What is your favourite aspect of coaching at the
community level?
A: Seeing the growth in both quality and quantity
of players at the community level has been a
huge highlight. I think as a nation we have made
much more of a commitment to developing this
especially at the grassroots level, in future years we
will see a positive knock on effect at the elite level
with more kids now playing with better coaches.
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58 FEMALE COACHES Women’s Football Development Guide
Q: What are your three favourite aspects of coaching?
eing a resource for the development of positive
B
experiences for young players
he journey of developing a plan, committing to
T
an action and experiencing an outcome as a part
of a team
he opportunity for continued growth and
T
development as a person and coach within football
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