After nine years at the helm, Whittlesea Pacers men’s state championship division coach, Ross Moll, has stepped away from the top job.
Moll, who previously spent five years as the club’s junior director of coaching, announced that Saturday night’s match against Bulleen was his 200th and last as head coach.
He said the timing was right for both him and the club to go in different directions.
“I’ve been there nine years now and probably with the same group of people,’ he said.
“They need a new voice and I need a new environment to get the best out of both of us.
“I always said when I wasn’t getting the best out of them, I would walk away.
“I need something new and they need someone new.”
Moll said the 2013 division 1 championship was the oncourt highlight in his time as coach.
“When I first started in 2008 we were fighting relegation in division 1,” he said.
“We won the championship in division one and got to go up to championship division.
“Seeing the program develop itself has been a highlight. The youth league side is again challenging for a premiership and we’ve seeing playing coming through the program.”
Moll’s final year in charge has been one of disappointment, with the Pacers winning just three games, although they did end the season on a high by beating bottom-of-the-table Bulleen 101-64.
“It’s been very disappointing,” Moll said of the season.
“The consistent theme is that we haven’t played a consistent 40 minutes. When we did, we beat [top team] Corio Bay.
“The potential was always there but we haven’t been consistent enough for long enough and at this level you will be found out.”
Moll said the core group of players was still fairly young and had the potential to have success in the future.
As for what’s next, Moll is unsure.
“I was focused on the decision and wanting to do something new,” he said.
“If that’s coaching, great. If it’s something different, that’s great, too.
“I’ll see what pops up that’s exciting.”
The Pacers’ women’s side finished the season with just one win in their first season in state championship division, and ended the season with an 8461 loss to Bulleen.
It was the last game for captain Sharyn Hughes after more than 200 games with the club.
