Football Coaches Australia AGM wrap-up: Terry McFlynn appointed to Executive Committee as organisation achieves major growth

Football Coaches Australia (FCA) has announced the appointment of Sydney FC Hall of Famer Terry McFlynn as its newest Executive Committee member at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) on September 9.

McFlynn was delighted to formally join the organisation after contributing in an unofficial capacity for three years.

“I was very honoured to be considered for the position and I’m thrilled to join FCA in an official capacity. The organisation is extremely important for football in Australia as it provides coaches with a voice and a direction,” McFlynn said.

“I’m here to support all of the people at FCA in any shape or form that I can. I very much look forward to working with Glenn Warry, Phil Moss, Heather Garriock, and the rest of FCA’s stakeholders who all do a fantastic job to advocate for coaches in the country.”

Phil Moss believes McFlynn’s impact will be “immeasurable”.

McFlynn will bring a world-class pedigree to FCA after enjoying a stellar career in Australian and international football, most notably as a player in the Hyundai A-League with Sydney FC. He has also captained Northern Ireland at junior level, from U15s through to U23s.

Since his retirement as a player in 2014, McFlynn’s leadership qualities and football knowledge have allowed him to successfully transition into a number of professional roles off-field.

He has served as General Manager of Player Welfare and General Manager of Football Operations, both at Sydney FC, and now works as Perth Glory’s Academy and W-League Manager.

FCA President Phil Moss warmly welcomed McFlynn, highlighting his leadership qualities and football experience, both on and off the pitch.

“I’m personally over the moon, Terry is a football person of the highest integrity. With his administrative and coaching mind, his value to FCA will be immeasurable,” Moss said.

“His skillset is extensive and varied. It is another example of the incredible calibre of people who are getting involved with FCA, which speaks volumes to the work that the organisation does.”

In addition to welcoming McFlynn to its Executive Committee, FCA’s AGM served as a platform to reflect on the organisation’s positive growth over the last 12 months and map out its key objectives for the future.

The association, which now boasts 382 members, reported major progress across three major pillars of focus – Governance, Advocacy, and Professional development.

“I think the highlight for me over the last 12 months has been the collaborative approach that we have been able to achieve with key stakeholders. This shows how determined we are to work together with key stakeholder for the good of the game and for the good of coaches,” Moss said.

“It is important to pay tribute to the work Glenn Warry (CEO) and Heather Garriock (VIce President) do. They are consistently working hard and in the best interests of coaches around Australia. The attendance at the AGM was very strong and it shows that FCA is growing and making a genuine difference.”

Since its inception in 2018, FCA has also made a commitment to gender equity and promoting diversity. Throughout the past year, the association made progress on this commitment by collaborating with the FFA’s Women’s Football Council, establishing a women’s mentorship program, achieving 40 per cent female representation on its Executive Committee, and working to break down barriers and attitudes towards women in coaching roles.

With the past 12 months proving to be successful, Moss is determined for FCA not to rest on its laurels and to continue its positive momentum.

“We are always thinking about what more we can do and how we can improve. It is important to keep those principles in mind because we have set a really strong foundation, but we are in no position to sit back and pat ourselves on the back. We need to continue to grow and evolve,” Moss said.

“The key priority moving forward will be driving revenue streams. We have set a strong platform now from which to build on, but driving sustainable revenue streams will ensure that FCA is financially viable and can stand on its own two feet. There are some really exciting things in the pipeline and I am confident that we can achieve that.”

Heather Garriock, Vice President of FCA echoed Moss’ sentiments surrounding financial sustainability, stating that accomplishing stable revenue streams was now a “must” for the organisation, particularly among corporate and commercial partnerships for FCA’s mentor program.

Heather Garriock says financial sustainability is a key goal for FCA.

With COVID-19 dominating the landscape around the country FCA has acted as a beacon of leadership, hosting more than 30 webinars and professional development workshops which reached in excess of 37,000 coaches nation-wide.

“Creating financial avenues is in our control. People are really enjoying FCA’s professional development workshops but at the moment we have been delivering them on a voluntary basis and it’s unsustainable,” Garriock said.

“It needs to become a two-way street and we need participants to contribute on their end because otherwise the services FCA offer won’t have longevity. So we will look for ways to convert the people attending the workshops and Zoom conferences into full-fledged members.”

For more information, visit footballcoachesaus.org.au

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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1200 players to descend on Geelong for Football Victoria Country Championships as Regional Football Enters New Era

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Image Credit: Football Victoria

More than 1,200 junior footballers from across regional Victoria will converge on Geelong this weekend for the 2026 Football Victoria Country Championships, with players representing eight regions competing across the King’s Birthday long weekend at Stead Park and Myers Reserve.

The tournament, which has been running since 1978 and has grown into one of the largest junior football events in the country, takes on additional significance this year. It marks the first Country Championships since Football Victoria announced a restructured regional football model in December 2025, making this edition an early measure of how that new framework translates into competitive outcomes at the representative level.

Sixty-seven teams will compete across Under-11 to Under-16 age groups for both boys and girls, with finals day scheduled for Monday. All fixtures and results will be available through the DRIBL app.

More than silverware

FV Regional Development Manager Lauren Stevens said the tournament represented something beyond the competitive results it produces.

“The Country Championships are an exciting opportunity for players from across regional Victoria to come together, represent their region and create lasting memories both on and off the pitch,” Stevens said. “This tournament has a rich history and continues to play an important role in bringing regional football communities together while providing players with the chance to experience a high-level representative environment and talent identification opportunity.”

That dual function is central to what makes the Country Championships structurally significant. For many players travelling to Geelong this weekend, a regional representative tournament is the highest level of football they have experienced. For some, it will be the environment in which they first come to the attention of Football Victoria’s technical staff and pathway programs.

The talent identification dimension carries particular weight at a moment when Football Victoria’s participation numbers are at record levels and the pipeline from community football to elite competition has never been more closely scrutinised. The 2025 Annual Report documented a 14 percent overall participation increase, with junior football among the fastest-growing segments. Tournaments like the Country Championships are where that growth begins to translate into representative opportunity for players who live outside metropolitan Melbourne.

Regional football in transition

The timing of this year’s Championships against the backdrop of Football Victoria’s regional restructure adds a layer of context that will be watched closely by administrators and clubs. The December 2025 announcement of the new regional model represented the most significant structural change to regional football governance in the state in some years, and the process of transitioning Life Members from regional associations into the Football Victoria honour roll at last month’s AGM reflected the scale of that change.

How the eight regions perform this weekend will offer an early indication of whether the restructured model is serving regional communities effectively.

The Corrie Koppen Fair Play Award, introduced last year to celebrate the life and legacy of the late Cornelius Koppen, adds a dimension to the competition that sits alongside the on-field results. The award is given to the region judged to have played and conducted itself in the spirit of the game, a recognition that how communities behave at a junior tournament is as meaningful as what they win.

Football West and Cook Government extend $960,000 mental health partnership through to 2027

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Football West will host its fourth annual Think Mental Health Round across all leagues and competitions on 25-26 July, backed by a renewed state government commitment worth $960,000 to support mental health and wellbeing programs in Western Australian football.

The Cook Government has extended its Healthway partnership with WA Football until 2027, with funding directed toward initiatives including Talk to a Mate BBQs, mental health education and training across both men’s and women’s competitions.

The round, run in partnership with Healthway’s Think Mental Health campaign, invites clubs to participate through events, signage, social media messaging and facilitated wellbeing sessions. Football West is also organising a series of mental health and wellbeing sessions for clubs in partnership with A Stitch in Time, with details to be confirmed. The partnership also supports an expansion of the Footy Fundamentals program, which targets fundamental movement skills in early childhood.

A Fixture in the Football Calendar

Think Mental Health Rounds have featured in the WA football calendar since 2022, following an earlier rollout in country competitions. This year’s metropolitan round aligns with Round 11 of the West Australian Football League and Round 12 of the West Australian Football League Women’s, placing mental health messaging at the centre of both competitions simultaneously.

For club administrators, the round offers a low-barrier activation opportunity. Clubs can register and access resources through Football West’s online portal, with options ranging from hosting a BBQ to completing the True Sport eLearning module on mental health and wellbeing awareness.

Sport and Recreation Minister Rita Saffioti said the partnership reflected the reach of football across Western Australian life.

“So many Western Australians have links to local football, whether they play, volunteer or support from the sideline, so this is a fantastic partnership and great way to generate awareness about this important issue,” Saffioti said.

Mental Health Minister Meredith Hammat said football clubs were well-positioned to shift the conversation around seeking support.

“WA Football’s upcoming Think Mental Health Rounds serve as a reminder of how important it is to check in and support one another, and make sure no one faces their struggles alone,” Hammat said.

Preventative Health Minister Sabine Winton said the government’s goal was to build capacity at club level.

“Through Healthway’s partnership with WA Football, we are equipping clubs with the tools and knowledge to champion mental health and wellbeing, build resilience and create stronger communities,” Winton said.

Just an awareness campaign?

Beyond the health outcomes, rounds like this carry practical significance for the football ecosystem. Clubs that foster psychologically safe environments tend to retain players and volunteers at higher rates, a factor that matters in a state where grassroots football competes for participants across a crowded sporting landscape.

Volunteer burnout and player dropout are persistent pressure points for football administrators across Australia. Programming that addresses mental health at club level, rather than directing participants elsewhere, positions clubs as genuine support structures within their local areas. That reputation has tangible effects on registration numbers, family engagement and the willingness of people to take on coaching and administrative roles.

The $960,000 commitment across two years also signals that the state government views football infrastructure as more than turf and floodlights. Embedding health initiatives within the competition calendar gives federations and clubs a degree of programming certainty, reducing the reliance on ad hoc grant applications to fund welfare activities.

For Football West, the extension means mental health support sits within a funded, multi-year framework through the back half of the decade, rather than being renegotiated season by season. In a state as geographically dispersed as Western Australia, where clubs in regional areas often operate with limited resources, that continuity carries weight beyond the metropolitan competitions it most visibly supports.

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