MICK Raynes has stepped down as coach of the Albury-Wodonga Steamers.
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Raynes coached the Steamers to two grand finals and a premiership after taking the senior job in 2013.
The highly respected mentor said now was the perfect time to relinquish the position, so as to give the club ample time to find a suitable replacement.
“I'll take a bit of a step back from the club now, I wanted to let them know as early as I could that I wouldn't return next year,” he said.
“The coaching staff should get a really long lead-in to next season, I’ve given the club some recommendations as to who I think could take on the job.
“Ultimately, now feels like a pretty good time to pull the pin.”
The wily coach said the way the team approached the 2014 season and lost grand final was every bit as memorable as its premiership 12 months later.
“We made the 2014 grand final against all odds,” he said.
“A lot of the coaching staff and the playing group had moved on before the start of that season.
“As a club, the expectations weren’t overly high, to make the grand final that year was an over-achievement in itself.
“It was driven by the desire of players like Richie Manion and Nathan Bright.
“We knew we had a playing group that could compete quite well, and we were able to sneak through the finals and into the grand final.
Mick lead the club through its glory days...he leaves a legacy of success.
- Steamers president Julianne Murtagh
“In 2015 we worked quite hard to build a team, ultimately nine of those played representative rugby and five of those played Brumbies provincial.”
While the season just gone was challenging, Raynes said the club was well placed to develop in the years to come.
“This year presented a different set of challenges, but it certainly didn’t take away my enjoyment of the game,” he said.
“A season like the one we’ve had has its own rewards.
“The guys we have at the moment have got potential in them, now it’s about realising it.”
President Julianne Murtagh said Raynes would leave a lasting impression on the club.
“This year has been a hard year, a building year, but we’ve laid a lot of groundwork,” she said.
“Mick led the club through its glory days, he had a great ability to bring in good players and build strong sides.
“He leaves us with a legacy of success.”
Murtagh said the club would commence the search for a new coach in the coming days.
“The upside of being out of the competition this early is that we get a lot of extra time to recruit, we can look at how we attract players to the club,” she said.
“This season we found a lot of depth, a lot of reserves players who stepped up.
“There's a great core of players who are really going to be good for us in the future.”