Georgie Haines is Culcairn's new A-grade netball coach

Haines has followed husband Tim back to her hometown club after he was recently announced as the Lions' new senior football coach.

She inherits an A-grade side which finished bottom of the ladder this season but is confident that a close bond between her players will lead to better results on the court.

"Next year the focus will be on getting the girls to enjoy playing netball again and creating a real culture of friendship," Haines said.

"When you've got a good group and everyone gets along, the success takes care of itself.

"I'll be trying to retain the players they've got out there and some past players that I've previously played with have already expressed interest in coming back, which would be great.

"Anyone's welcome. If you get good people, whether they're A-grade, B-grade, C-grade or C Res, it's not necessarily about winning next year but more about enjoying it again."

Haines played Ovens and Murray with Wodonga Raiders this season but feels it's the perfect time to come back home.

"We love the culture and smaller community vibe at Culcairn," she said.

"Everyone knows everyone and it's a really tight-knit group.

ALSO IN SPORT

"I loved playing at Raiders but playing in the state you live in makes a bit more sense in the current climate.

"I've got no regrets though. It's a great standard, I loved the training and I've definitely learned a lot.

"I've made some more networking connections and would love to get some of the girls to help us out and use their experience at Culcairn.

"I coached a bit of juniors when I was younger and I've always had aspirations to coach. After playing in the O and M and getting a bit more experienced, in the last 12 months I considered it a bit more seriously.

"It's something they've been asking me to do for the last couple of years but I probably wasn't ready.

"I haven't had the time to commit to it fully in the past but I think 2022 is a great time to have a crack."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: