Tara Murray
Hume City overcame a coaching change to continue its run in the Australia Cup.
Hume announced on Monday it had parted ways with coach Ersan Gulum, just a day out from its Australia Cup match with FV state league 4 west side Keilor Wolves.
Under-21 coach Colin Cooper was named coach on Tuesday, after many years of experience at the club.
Speaking before the game to Hume TV, Cooper said he was grateful for the opportunity to take on the senior coaching role.
“It’s a great honour,” he said. Obviously I’ve been around the club for eight years doing, different things and to be given this opportunity, in football, just pretty grateful to be honest.
“The message I said to the playing group, I’ve got so much respect for the players in there and what they’ve done.
“My appointment has been through hard work. I think it’s a credit to our club that I sort of come of the junior NPL ranks, I’ve been the inaugural academy coach, TD [technical director] and under-21 coach.
“There’s a bit of a message to the 21s, this is a club that is going to give you an opportunity.”
Cooper said he was quick to focus on the future and what the club could do going forward than what had happened this season so far.
He said he wanted to build with the playing group and understand them and earn their trust.
“We’re looking for marginal gains, one per cent here, one per cent there,” he said.
“We’re this close at the moment, the boys have been playing pretty well.
“There will be some ups and downs.”
Cooper’s coaching stint started on a winning note against the Wolves.
Hume experience and fitness shone through against one of the lowest ranked teams still in the competition, winning 8-0.
Josh Bingham and Mitchell Cooper both scored twice in the win.
Hume will face the Eastern Lions in the next round.
