The Coach’s SANFL Season Preview

Norwood Senior Coach Jade Sheedy says his players are raring to go as the Redlegs prepare to kick off the 2026 SANFL Men’s campaign at Coopers Stadium on Friday night.

Producing a stirring finish to the 2025 season that saw Norwood surge to within a kick of the grand final after recovering from a 0-5 start, the Redlegs look set to carry plenty of momentum into the new season.

Meanwhile, the return of 2024 Magarey Medallist Harry Boyd, along with the addition of AFL veteran defender Aaron Francis and midfield bull Kade Ditmarr, only adds to the excitement at The Parade.

Speaking to The Redlegs Review Podcast on the eve of Round 1, second-year coach Sheedy spoke with optimism about the pre-season.

“It has been a good summer. The players have done a mountain of work. We are in week 15 now and have covered over 300km across 50 sessions,” Sheedy said.

“We have obviously tried to keep building on where we finished off last year and keep expanding our game, and we feel throughout pre-season that has definitely come to life.”

Listen to the full interview here

Having begun his first season in charge of the Redlegs with a mammoth injury list amidst a 0-5 start, Sheedy believes his group is better prepared entering the new campaign.

“It is hard to compare seasons, but I feel we are better organised this year. There have been some new elements of our game that we brought in, but there were a lot that stayed the same.

“I guess a lot of it is around the language and what things mean in certain areas, so having the full year to understand that and going into another pre-season, we’ve continued to try and improve.

“Like any footy club, we face challenges, and I think every club in 2025 dealt with challenges at different parts of the year. Our challenge was at the start of the year, when we lost Harry (Boyd), then we signed (Lachie) McAndrew and that didn’t come through.

“We had our fair share of injuries, which is part of the game, and we don’t make excuses for it, but it gave a lot of players a good look at league footy. We have a list of 61 players, and we believe every one of them can play league footy, so that’s a good starting point.”

After a long summer on the track, Sheedy identified several players who impressed him with big pre-seasons and could elevate their game to new heights in 2026.

“Players like Jayden Gale and Charlie Molan come to mind. Cooper Murley had a really good year last year. Alastair Lord and Alec Wright are others who are part of that next generation of players who are in their early 20s and starting to play some really good consistent footy and are probably at a stage now where they’ve played around 40 games and have all had excellent summers and look consistently good at the level.”

“Lowey (Baynen Lowe) only played half the season last year and has had a super summer. Nik Rokahr looks in as good a condition as any SANFL player I’ve seen for a long time, and he’s had a really good summer as well.”

Norwood will also welcome ruckman Harry Boyd back to the line-up after his AFL stint at St Kilda last year, with Sheedy reserving high praise for his dedication and commitment.

“I have got to know Harry over the summer and there are no surprises why he is so good. I was impressed with how diligent he is. He watches a lot of footage on the opposition and helps out with our young rucks and really takes charge of the midfield group as well.”

“He is really clear about what the midfield looks like and our hit zones and making sure everyone is organised, which is a really good starting point.”

The Redlegs also landed the key acquisition of midfield star Kade Ditmarr from Central District, who is set to add further firepower to the on-ball brigade.

“Kade was brought in to play a significant role in our midfield. What we did really well last year was transition and run, but we felt we needed a bit more support with a bigger body in there to take the load off a few of our mids.”

“I think adding Kade with his presence and big body gives us the ability to compete on the inside but also win a lot of ball on the outside and get the ball going forward.”

Former Essendon and Sydney Swans utility Aaron Francis has also made a big impact since arriving at The Parade, slotting seamlessly into defence and impressing with his marking prowess.

“‘Franga’ was really keen to get to a footy club and make it his home for the next three or four years, and he’s really motivated to play SANFL footy. He was a first-round draft pick back in the day and we know what a high-level player he is. He marks the ball and gets the ball off the line really well, and for a big guy he moves well laterally, so he’s going to be a great addition.”

Also among the new faces are forwards Matt Harms and Josh Murphy, who have both displayed plenty of promise across the pre-season.

“Matt has played some footy in the VFL and amateur footy in Melbourne as well. He is a small forward type who can get to a lot of really good spots and hit the scoreboard, and he’s got great work ethic to get up and down the ground and he’s a strong man as well with the way he tackles.”

“Josh is from the Ovens and Murray League and played some footy in Collingwood’s VFL team last year. He ended up kicking 62 goals in the Ovens and Murray League and has now played a couple of years against men and is showing some real promise in front of goal as well.”

Meanwhile, emerging star Finn Heard is set to return to the forward line after spending much of last season in the ruck following the loss of Boyd and injuries to Luke Surman.

“Early on, Luke was playing around 50% game time, which meant Finn had to play the other 50% and also spend a small period of time on the bench, which meant he was probably only playing forward about 30% of game time. We really want to get that up to around 70% with a little bit of time in the ruck and then obviously he would need a breather as well.”

“I think what he did last year, finishing third in our best and fairest and coming home really strongly, was a major reason as to why we went so far in the year. I can remember Round 19 here at Coopers Stadium and then what he did through the finals, which will hold him in good stead not only playing forward but around the ball for season 2026.”

With a relatively healthy list and plenty of quality to choose from, Sheedy and his coaching staff face some tough calls at selection this week, but it is a problem he is glad to have.

“They are good problems to have. It is always rewarding to make the phone call to potential debutants and players who have had really good pre-seasons, and then it can break your heart the other way when they put in so much time and effort, but the reality is we can only play 22 players, and there are more than that who deserve to be playing league footy this week.”

Sheedy also provided an update on several key injuries ahead of the season opener, with gun midfielder Mitch O’Neill, star half-back Matthew Ling and key defender Jack Heard all currently on the sidelines.

“Mitch did a recurring hamstring, but he’s tracking really well, so we’ve got to sometimes hold him back because he’s so keen.”

“Lingy’s collarbone against North Adelaide ended up in a few pieces, so he’s a bit more long-term and looking at a Round 8 or 9 return, but he’s in good spirits and can start running in a couple of weeks.

“We are pretty buoyant that Jack will come up for this week. He has just had some ligament damage and has a small tear, but he’s feeling really good and we’ll see how he trains on Thursday, but we’re pretty hopeful he’ll come up.”

Sheedy was also largely pleased with the performance of his team across the two practice matches against North Adelaide and Glenelg, but took some key learnings away ahead of Round 1.

“The first trial was about even at quarter time and we needed to fix a few things defensively, but after that we took control of the game. I think our defensive to offensive transition and our ability to win the ball back were really strong and we finished really well. We won contest that night as well, especially around stoppage, so it was a good starting point to get the ball going forward.”

“I was pretty happy looking back at the Glenelg game. It sort of ebbed and flowed. Going into half-time we were up by four or five goals and Glenelg did some things really well that we had a look at with their back-half transition, but to keep them to that score for most of the night, our defensive game was in good order.”

With the pre-season now finally in the books, Sheedy is keen to get the season underway with a blockbuster Friday night clash against reigning premier and arch rival Sturt at Coopers Stadium.

“We are looking forward to it. They (Sturt) lost only one game last year and everyone is chasing them. We have a great challenge against the best team in the competition last year, coming off a premiership, but with the way we finished last year and the momentum we have continued to build over the summer, we are looking forward to the challenge.”

Sheedy urged all Norwood fans to get to Coopers Stadium and get behind their team for what shapes as a huge clash.

“We’re looking forward to seeing all the supporters on Friday night. We think it will be a big crowd. Come down and support the players; they’ve done an amazing job over the summer and I’m looking forward to seeing them play.”