By Hayley Wildes
There are few players who strike fear into the opposition like Nyora player-coach Fia Tootoo does. With a frame that is built like a truck and a fearless attack on the ball, Tootoo rarely comes away from a contest second best.
At 37 years of age, Tootoo pulled his beloved Saints guernsey on for the 100th time over the weekend; a magical milestone for a man who has given so much to Nyora.
“I have been around a while now – I’m 37 and have played for a couple of clubs but Nyora is a place that I call a second home,” he said.
Having grown up in North Dandenong, the tough and uncompromising Tootoo found his way to Nyora in 2007, helping the club to its most recent senior premiership that year. After spending 2012-15 in the Eastern Football League, he returned to Nyora in 2016.
“I always knew I was going to come home and finish up in Nyora,” he said.
“It’s a football club where I feel like I can be me.”
The undefeated Saints are absolutely flying in 2018 and with Tootoo leading a young team – 80 percent of players are 24 or under – he has pushed each and every player to be leaders in their own right.
“I do pride myself on being a leader and I always give 100 percent, but these kids are all leaders and I think everyone has realised that we need 22 leaders out there to win games,” he said.
While Tootoo admits an 11-0 record wasn’t part of the plan, he was always confident that this was the year Nyora would return to finals for the first time in a decade.
“We identified and recruited certain players and those players have been superb, as have my coaching staff,” he said.
“They help me and they know what it takes to be successful – that’s the reason we went after them.
“We didn’t expect to win 11 games in a row, but I suppose with the massive pre-season we had, anything is possible and so far that shows.”
While it may appear to some that Nyora’s domination has come out of nowhere, that is far from the case. The club has been building since Tootoo took over as senior coach late in season 2016.
“Our coach quit before the 2016 season started and then the assistant coach quit with four games to go, so they asked me to take over,” he said.
“It wasn’t expected and with five different coaches in six years, there was no stability.
“With a lot of young players, I think they were looking for someone to lead and, being the oldest and most experienced one there, I accepted the role to finish the season off and we won the last four games.”
Tootoo admits that balancing coaching and playing is tough, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“It’s a challenge, but it’s a challenge I really enjoy,” he said.
“Fortunately for me, I have a young group that is willing to learn and they make my job a lot easier.”
In a sentence that perfectly sums up Tootoo’s connection and love for the Nyora Football Club, when asked what the highlight has been over his first 100 games, he put it simply.
“I think every game that you get to play for your club is a highlight.”
