Lauren ‘LJ’ Morecroft discusses her rise to first female coach in Coates Talent League for boys

People are saying she’s a football “trailblazer’’.

She thinks of herself only as a football coach.

On Saturday, Morecroft will become the first female to coach in the Coates Talent League for boys when the Eastern Ranges meet the Sandringham Dragons at Moorabbin.

The 35-year-old won’t be thinking of the significance of the occasion.

She says she’ll be more concerned with a good performance from her Ranges against one of the league’s powers.

“I think we’ve got a pretty decent side,’’ Morecroft says.

“We’ve been told they (the Dragons) have got strong 17-year-olds and strong 18-year-olds. They’re working really well over there, as usual. They’re the benchmark.’’

But it is a noteworthy occurrence for Victorian football, as Morecroft was reminded of this week.

Ranges region manager Danny Ryan brought it up at the club jumper presentation. And there has been “general hype’’ around round one.

“I guess it is a big deal,’’ Morecroft says.

“But I think there will be more female coaches pretty quickly. There are a lot of women in coaching these days, particularly at AFLW level, a lot with skill-sets that will transfer over pretty well.

“I may be the first. But I definitely won’t be the last. I’m sure some more doors will open for females and I hope they take them. When you think it might be a bit of a stretch, it’s the right time to go for it.’’

Morecroft played for the Western Bulldogs in the 2017 kick-off season of the AFLW and was discarded after two games.

It set her on the path to coaching, first at Essendon in the VFLW as a playing assistant and then North Melbourne and Carlton in the AFLW.

Morecroft had completed her Level 3 accreditation with former AFL star Travis Cloke.

The connection kicked in when Cloke was appointed to coach the Eastern Ranges; Morecroft joined him as an assistant, looking after the midfield for the girls’ program and then running the bench for the boys.

When the AFL decided last year to have separate boys and girls coaches in the Under 18 competitions, both full-time positions, Morecroft, a school teacher for 10 years, decided to apply.

She was keen to “have a piece of it’’, at Eastern or in another region.

“But I did have a strong connection here,’’ she says. “I really enjoyed working with Danny, really enjoyed working with Trav. I thought if it was going to be, it would be with Trav, and naturally I’d be in the girls program and he’d be in the boys.

“Then he moved on to other opportunities (as coach of Essendon VFLW). And it came up that the boys program was an option.’’

She says it wasn’t spoken about during the interview process with AFL talent officials.

What was discussed was her coaching and her aspirations for it.

Eventually, she was offered the position to lead the Eastern boys.

Former Collingwood VFL player and AFL development coach Ash Close will guide the girls.

“It was something I didn’t expect, like at all,’’ Morecroft says.

“No one’s been in this spot before so it didn’t cross my mind. But as soon as it was mentioned, I started to think about it and was really excited.

“Leaving teaching was a slight hesitation but I was probably ready for the full-time jump into footy.’’

There was no hesitation about coaching boys, she says.

She knew all of the returning players, enjoyed a good relationship with Ryan and thought there was a “really nice feel’’ to the club.

Morecroft lives in Mentone. The Dragons, Dandenong Stingrays and Oakleigh Chargers are closer to her home than Kilsyth, the home of the Ranges, but Eastern would be her first preference, she says.

Since her appointment, she’s had some “kind conversations with the parents and kind feedback coming through’’.

“I haven’t changed too much from what Trav has set up,’’ she says.

“I guess it’s the way I carry myself.

“I don’t think it’s much of a change for the boys. It’s not like it’s a new thing to have a female in their lives. They’ve all had female teachers. They’ve got mums and sisters and aunties. I guess it’s different with footy. But I haven’t seen a change at all.’’

She says she hasn’t experienced or sensed any negativity from inside or outside the club, and appreciates the confidence of AFL talent officials Chris Liberatore, Paul Hamilton, Tarkyn Lockyer and Grant Williams.

“I’m being supported. There’s a support network there. Even if this year is not a successful year coaching-wise, the support’s there to grow and have another go at it next year and continue on. I’m not set up to fail in any way.’’

*****

Where did “LJ’’ come from?

When Morecroft was a Western Bulldog, she was one of three Laurens on the list.

Lauren Arnell and Lauren Spark were also at the Dogs and, like a good forward, they needed to find separation.

“We had to sort a system out,’’ she says.

“My middle name is Jessica. So I became ‘LJ’. It fitted.’’

And it stuck.

“I don’t mind it,’’ she says. “I enjoy a good nickname. It works well for me.’’

Morecroft had started in football at Auskick but, in the absence of any pathways, she played no junior football.

She returned to the game at the age of 25 with Diamond Creek in the old Victorian women’s league, figuring in strong sides and in a premiership.

The Dogs drafted her. But her time in the AFLW was fleeting rather than lasting; she was one of nine players let go at the end of the first season. “Delisted,’’ she calls it.

It was “really hard’’. Morecroft felt she would have been more valuable in a second season.

“Other players were. Meg McDonald has gone on to captain Geelong,’’ she says. “Crazy that she was in that group. So, yeah, disappointing, but once moving through that I started coaching really quickly.’’

Scott Gowans, who coached her at Diamond Creek, took her on as an assistant at North Melbourne AFLW in 2019.

Morecroft had been a defender; Gowans asked her to look after the midfield, a “steep learning curve’’ made easier by players like Emma King and Emma Kearney.

Two years later, she was under Daniel Harford at Carlton, again overseeing the midfielders but a younger bunch.

She says it was another test, but that’s part of the coaching caper.

*****

For quite a while, “LJ” Morecroft felt the sting of being cut by the Western Bulldogs.

In the past few weeks, she’s had to make her own tough calls on players, reducing the Eastern list from 83 to 47.

She says it’s the hardest part of the job, “particularly when for some of the boys it’s their dream to play AFL’’.

“I’ve been in that situation, so I know what it feels like,’’ Morecroft says.

“I make sure I give them a fair bit of information, so they go away with a sheet and their fitness testing results and feedback on how they can improve their game.

“Often in those meetings you can forget and not listen. So it’s important that they take away something physical. We like to be really thorough with it. It’s an important part of the feedback.’’

Morecroft says Eastern has a skilled and speedy team this season, and she wants it to play “fast, just with that class we’ve got there, and aggressive in defence and then turn it over and punish the over way.

“We’ve got a lot of pace in our side, and good ball users … I think it’s exciting if players get to come through the corridor and pull great kicks if they can. Why not showcase it? That’s part of this league, showcasing the talent and hopefully getting a few drafted. Great kicking, fast movement, fast defence, that’s all part of it.’’

On Saturday, the Eastern Ranges will open their season against the Sandringham Dragons, whose region and talent manager is Mark Wheeler, one of the more senior figures in the competition.

Wheeler hasn’t had a lot to do with “LJ’’ Morecroft.

But he’s aware of the impact of her appointment.

“I reckon it’s unbelievable that we’ve got to this opportunity,’’ says Wheeler, whose wife, Kylie Watson-Wheeler, is president of the Western Bulldogs.

“These girls are forging their own pathway … we shouldn’t be identifying males and females at a coaching level. We should say, ‘Well, who has the accreditation and who has knowledge good enough to be able to do this position?’ She’s shown that she has that.

“I’m excited. I’m excited for her and I’m excited for our group to see what they can dish up against her team.’’

Wheeler hopes Morecroft and her Ranges do well this season – but not on Saturday.

Ranges talent manager Danny Ryan on LJ Morecroft

“LJ was probably keen to go into the girls space – that’s where all her footy has been – and we thought that’s how it would work out for her. But we were really excited when her name came up as a candidate to replace Trav (Travis Cloke). She was fantastic when she came in last year as an assistant coach. She gave everyone a lot of support and knowledge, and she built a really good connection with the boys.

“It was a really simple transition from her coming in and Trav leaving. She’s got that education background and she explains things well and keeps it simple. The players really buy in to what she’s talking about. They’re the ones who have actually been talking her up. She does challenge them at certain points but they’ve reacted really well. They’re rapt to have her coaching the program.’’