Werribee City is stuck between a rock and a hard place.
The Bees have made no secret of their desire to build for the long term and will do so with young home-grown talent.
But with this strategy comes inevitable short-term pain, and it has already claimed a coach.
The Bees needed to find a coach willing to see out the process, and they have turned to the experienced Sergio Sabbadini.
Sabbadini performed a similar rebuild in a seven-year technical director stint with Bulleen Lions, who took the next step in their evolution by earning promotion to the top tier of the NPL last season.
The 58-year-old believes he has the know-how and patience to help Werribee City achieve a similar feat in the long term.
“I’ve done it all before, but it’s still a big job and one I’m looking forward to,” Sabbadini told Star Weekly.
“It takes time and you can’t do it overnight. It will all work out as long as we have patience.”
While the new coach shares the same long-term vision as Werribee City’s powerbrokers, he’s keen to generate a bit more excitement in the first team.
After 11 rounds, the Bees are yet to pick up a win, which has really dampened the confidence of the senior team.
Sabbadini wants a more competitive outfit and needs to find some experienced players who will fit with the target demographic.
“We need to stabilise the first team and that’s a first priority, with good young players who are going to be there for a few years – not just one season and they’re off,” he said.
“I’m not talking about 35-year-olds. I want good senior players in their mid-20s, who can lead the kids through and have an instant positive effect for our results as well. We’re sounding out people every day.”
Sabbadini will take a holistic approach and work closely with a soon-to-be-appointed technical director.
With a host of talented youngsters rising through the ranks, Sabbadini wants to create a pathway for them to filter into the senior sides.
He points to Bulleen’s successful junior pathway and use of local players as a blueprint the Bees can follow.
“I think the junior program at Bulleen is one of the best in the state,” Sabbadini said.
“We were fair dinkum about our junior development. The senior squad that won promotion last year was 60 per cent made up of players who had come through our junior set-up.”
Yasin Nur last week made his senior first team debut for Werribee City at the age of 15.
Sabbadini has the belief that if a player is good enough, they’re old enough. But he’s not going to throw kids in the deep end if they can’t swim.
“Ideally, I’d rather promote players from within, but some of those players just aren’t ready yet.
“It can be detrimental if you put them in too soon, so you need to be wary of that.
“It’s best to give them bits and pieces here and there and it might be 12 to 18 months before we see the benefit of that.”
Sabbadini had a long career as both a defensive midfielder and on the last line.
The Fairfield resident made his debut with Brunswick Juventus at 16 and went on to play there for 14 years before finishing his career with Fawkner Blues and Bulleen Lions.
After seven years on the coaching staff at Bulleen, it was time for a fresh challenge. His first three weeks at Werribee City have been promising. “The players have been like sponges, receptive to what we’re doing and trying to put the new systems in place,” he said.
“They’re not a very old bunch so it’s not like they’ve developed bad habits. We should be able to mould them into a good side.”
