Tongala will be heading in a new, yet incredibly familiar, direction next season.
The club has announced that veteran player Jordan Souter, who coached the club to its most recent grand final appearance in 2019, will return to take charge of the senior side in 2026.
Souter replaces Stephen Hammond, who leaves the role after one season in charge.
“I’ve got a little bit of unfinished business,” Souter said.
“(That’s) probably the main reason why I got back into the role, but I've always liked coaching and I wanted to set some foundations for next year and (future) years.”
Souter’s first coaching stint at the Blues spanned from 2018 to 2022 and saw his side come from fifth position on the ladder to reach the 2019 grand final.
Nathalia outclassed Tonny on that day, winning the decider 13.8 (86) to 5.11 (41) to secure a fifth-straight flag.
Although he stepped down from the role before the 2023 season, Souter remained with the club as a player, passing the 200-game mark in 2024.
Tongala had a heavy turnover in its list after Souter left the helm, falling from 15-3 in 2022, to 5-13 in 2023.
Several of those departing names returned to the club this season, but the Blues couldn’t find the form of the past, posting just five wins again this year.
“This year we probably didn’t do as well as we would have liked,” Souter said.
“I think we would have liked to be a little bit stronger, but we lost a few closer games that we didn’t really intend to.
“We’ll jig a few things around next year and hopefully we can get back pointed in the right direction towards finals.”
Tongala has already secured recommitments from a number of major names, including captain Kyle Fitzgerald.
The Blues have also put pen to paper on their first new recruits for 2026, bringing former best-and-fairest winner and ruck Jack Monigatti from the Northern Territory Football League back to the club and adding Elmore key forward Darcy Laffy to the squad.
Souter will also have access to the services of several top-agers coming out of the under-17s after the Blues’ thirds finished fifth this year.
The new boss says building from within is a key focus for him as he takes the helm.
“I’m fairly hands-on and committed to our local core group,” Souter said.
“Last time we recruited a bit heavier from outside Victoria to top up, and next year we’re really trying to keep it as local as we can and keep our junior boys.
“We’ve got a good core group of top-age juniors coming through, so we really want to keep them and get as many games into them as we possibly can as well.”
As for what he hopes to achieve in 2026, Souter was keen to downplay finals as an immediate target, but said every team wanted to feature in the post-season.
“We just have to really get to work, get the basics right, get good connections within the playing group, do the little things right and then hopefully it can turn into bigger things,” he said.
“We obviously play footy to play finals.
“We’re a long way off that at the moment, but that’s the way we aim to head for the upcoming season.”
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