IF ANY Mansfield supporters had doubts about Craig Kelly's passion for coaching their footy team, such concerns were allayed a month ago. On that afternoon in early June, the Eagles were hosting Euroa, a team near the foot of the ladder. By quarter-time, they led by eight goals.
Kelly briefly addressed his players, but his real rev-up was directed towards the people standing around fire drums on the other side of the fence. Mansfield president Peter Morgan tells the story: "(Kelly) said, 'Listen here, this is your home ground. You've got to get a bit more fired up. We need more noise!' It was the first time the crowd's ever got a spray from the coach."
True to form, the Eagles' large and enthusiastic following came to life and their team responded. By the final siren, Mansfield had 31 goals on the board and Kelly's popularity in the high-country town was unquestioned.
"He loves Mansfield and he loves country footy," added Morgan.
It is a remarkable effort that Kelly has even found the time and inclination to coach a bush footy team.
In the growing industry that is the AFL, the member of Collingwood's 1990 premiership team is a prominent and powerful participant. Having co-founded Elite Sports Properties after an eight-year career with the Magpies, he is the chief executive of a multimillion-dollar business that manages many of Australia's highest-profile sporting and media stars including Nathan Buckley, Matthew Knights, Garry Lyon, Brian Taylor and Shane Crawford.
But while the man known as "Ned" is at home in the corporate world, he is a country boy at heart, having grown up in Riverton, 100 kilometres north of Adelaide.
Kelly's initial contact with Victoria's high country was largely a result of his wife's zeal for skiing. After visiting the region many times, they bought a small farm at Merrijig, a hamlet between Mansfield and Mt Buller.
"I needed to find a place that got me out of Melbourne and the craziness of that joint," Kelly said.
He was introduced to Mansfield's footy club by local legend Christian "Fish" Thompson. Since then, Kelly and the Eagles have enjoyed a fruitful relationship. At first, he helped out by providing business advice, assisting with recruiting and organising sportsmen's nights. But itchy feet soon got the better of him. In 2007, at the age of 41, he played some games in the reserves and even a couple in the seniors, the highlight being an eight-goal haul in the elimination final victory over Euroa.
Then, late last year, the Eagles found themselves without a senior coach, after Thompson quit the position. Mansfield's committee began considering its options. "About half of our senior side lives in Melbourne," Morgan explained. "So we thought it might be good to get someone who spends a bit of time down there."
Kelly's name was thrown into discussions. "I guess we were more hopeful than anything. But it didn't take him long to come back and say he'd give it a go. How good's that!"
A recruiting drive was launched and netted a number of quality players, including Simon and Nathan Hart (sons of Richmond legend Royce Hart), Tim Demetriou (nephew of the AFL chief executive), Tim Van Der Klooster (managed by Kelly when on North Melbourne's list) and Nick Gieschen (son of Jeff Gieschen).
The Melbourne-based Eagles have been training under Kelly in the city every Wednesday, while in Mansfield, Fraser Stephenson and Simon Dolling put the local boys through their paces.
This unorthodox situation hasn't prevented the Eagles from emerging as premiership contenders and going into last Saturday's match against fellow top-six side Mooroopna, they were fourth on the ladder.
"I've got so much on with work, so to get in the car and drive for two hours with the phone off and a bit of Cat Stevens going, it's great," Kelly said prior to the game. "The great thing about footy is that, different to work or business, you actually get a result every weekend."
Played before a big and noisy crowd, the match was close for the first three quarters. Sitting in the corrugated iron-clad coach's box, Kelly rode every bump, while barking instructions to his bench via a walkie-talkie.
At the final change, the Eagles held a narrow advantage, before pouring on seven goals to one in the final quarter to win by 54 points. Simon Hart finished with six majors, while the stats men declared Gieschen had collected a staggering 66 possessions.
"It's a good vibe," Kelly said later. "I'm really enjoying it. I've got a real belief and passion that if we can get country footy right, then it can have a big impact on young kids. It's a really positive environment — lose weight, be healthy and zero tolerance for any stupid stuff that can go on."
Sitting on a wooden bench, brushing mud off his knees, acting captain Ben Millott said the feeling around the club was similar to 2004, when David Mensch and Trent Hotton led the Eagles to their first major league flag. Mensch, who turns 37 next month, has returned to the club this season.
"The first half of the year is hard work because we're only just getting to know each other," Millott said. "But we're going to click in the second half. It's exciting. That's what happened in '04. By the time we got to the finals, we were unstoppable."
Over the next three months, Millott and the other Mansfield locals will see a bit more of the coach. In what has become a family tradition, Kelly and his clan base themselves in the mountains for the third term of each school year and his two youngest boys, Max and Will, attend the Mansfield school and play footy in the local juniors.
All this means that the 43-year-old, who is aiming to coach the Eagles again next season, has a vested interest in their long-term future.
"Our aim here is to develop our club all the way from the under-12s up and then, hopefully, have guys consistently knocking on the door of the Murray Bushrangers," he said.
For that to be realised, a planned redevelopment of the small and boggy Mansfield oval will be vital. While that project is expected to finally start during summer, for now, Kelly and the Eagles have a finals series in sight.
Article first appeard the Sunday Age
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