David Miles and Matt McDonald will coach Howlong again in 2024

The pair have shared the role for the first time this season, leading the Spiders to another finals campaign in the Hume League.

Miles, having returned to his junior club in 2020 after 15 years in the Ovens and Murray, has now extended his coaching tenure into a fifth season at Howlong.

The players were informed of the duo's re-appointment before training on Thursday night.

"We're on the same page, myself and Milesy," McDonald said.

"We're happy where the group is at.

"We haven't done anything yet but we can see the future is bright.

"So it was a pretty easy decision.

"Milesy and myself go back to the days at North Albury, playing together, we've always got along well and known each other so I think it was always going to go well.

"The way coaching is now, it's a big job to be playing and coaching at the same time.

"So I think it's worked hand in hand.

"It took the pressure off Milesy a little bit, so he could concentrate on playing a bit more, and I think it's shown.

"His form is as good as it's been for the last few years.

"He leads on the track, doesn't miss a session and he hasn't missed a game this year.

"He's a professional in the way he prepares his body so he's a great role model.

"I think easing the pressure on him was one of the biggest things and it's definitely shown this year on the field."

Miles has now played 40 games for the Spiders and will be a key part of their assault on finals, with McDonald orchestrating things from the coaching box.

"Don't worry, there's times when I'd love to pull the boots on again," McDonald said.

"But being involved off the field pretty heavily makes up for that.

"It's had ebbs and flows; we started really well this year and we've come to a patch where we've got quite a few injuries.

"So it's about getting that right, moving into the finals.

"It hasn't been all roses, it's been a lot of hard work and dedication.

"The biggest thing about being a coach is that everyone's different.

"You've got to coach everyone differently, you've got to speak to everyone differently, some guys like a rev-up, some guys like to be nurtured more one-on-one and I think that's the best part of coaching; being able to have a relationship with the players and hopefully seeing some success out of that - whether it be personally for them or as a team."

Howlong sit fourth on the ladder with a 9-6 record, having pushed leaders Osborne close in both meetings yet slipped up against Lockhart and Jindera away from home.

McDonald likes their prospects in both the short and long term.

"We've got great juniors, our U14s are going really well and our U17s are sitting in the top two," he said.

"We've always had really good numbers, our reserves were top-two but they've been hit with a lot of injuries but I think the future's bright.

"It's just about creating an environment everyone wants to come to on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday and we really have that."

Howlong entertains Billabong Crows on Saturday before taking on fellow finalists CDHBU and Rand-Walbundrie-Walla in their final two games of the home-and-away season.

To read more stories, download The Border Mail news app in the Apple Store or Google Play.

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: