BEECHWORTH are on the search for a new senior football coach after Tom Cartledge announced he would be stepping down from the role after three years.

The former Beechworth junior told the playing group following their 35-point semifinal loss to Chiltern of his decision which he made to the committee in the weeks prior.

Catrtledge, along with co-coach Brayden Carey, oversaw the senior side’s return to Sandy Creek action 2022, falling a game short of a grand final appearance.

The team would make semi-finals over the next two years as Cartledge was given the reigns on his own this year.

Cartledge said for the betterment of the playing group, he thought the time was right to move on.

“I feel like I’ve taken them as far as I can with my skill set and footy knowledge and it’s a good platform for someone else to come in now and take them that next step,” he said.

“I’m not trying to chase any coaching accolades or anything like that, I just want to see the group progress further.”

Cartledge said he would look back proudly over what he has achieved with the club, going from league easy beats to consistent Sandy Creek contenders.

“To go from being that side that might’ve had that one quarter lapse each game and getting blown out of the park to becoming a top five, top three team each year, I’m really proud of that turnaround,” he said.

“To put the team up there as a team other sides don’t want to play rather than writing us off early in the year, I’m really happy with that progress.”

Beechworth FNC president Adam Fendyk said the committee became aware of Cartledge’s desire to step down in the later part of the season and the club thanked him whole heartedly for his service.

“Tom’s fantastic, there’s no doubt his leadership on and off the field is second to none, he’s a ripping fellow and super proud to have him around at the club,” he said.

“He and Brayden Carey got us out of a huge amount of trouble, we had a mid-season split in 2021 with the previous coach and the only thing that made that bearable was that Tom was coming on as coach, which was great.

“As always in finals you need 21 fit players and a whole lot of luck, which we’ve struggled a bit with over the last three years.

“The effort Tom has put in has been exemplary, you can’t be measured on premierships.”

The Bushrangers were knocked out of the 2024 finals at Sandy Creek in the semis, as their opponents that day Chiltern prepare for a grand final tomorrow against Yackandandah.

Fendyk said the club will look to begin their search for a new senior coach throughout the offseason.

“We’re looking for someone to try and bring our focus from our juniors to our seniors, develop a game plan, style and culture at the club that can be carried through into future years as well as whatever we can bring into next year,” he said.

“I think it was the first time we had two teams in finals this year since 2010, so certainly our goal is to be there or thereabouts again.

“Our goal next year is certainly to make sure we have better stocks through our reserves and get to finals in that grade.”

In a mix of good news, Cartledge also announced his re-commitment to the club as a player, which he said was an easy decision.

“The club’s great, the committee’s great, it’s a great bunch of lads to play footy with each week,” he said.