Mariners land Moss the boss

NEWLY appointed Central Coast Mariners coach Phil Moss is set to follow in the footsteps of football veteran Miron Bleiberg, becoming just the second Jewish manager to take the reins of an A-League club.

Moss, whose brother Jon was a regular in the Victorian Bushrangers cricket side in the 2000s, will take over from outgoing boss Graham Arnold, who took up a job with Japanese side Vegalta Sendai. The 42-year-old admits he has big shoes to fill.

“I’m obviously a different person to “Arny”, but he mentored me for a long time now and the time is right for me to take over,” Moss told The AJN.

“I feel I’ve worked hard to give the club the opportunity to be stable and I’m now blessed they’ve shown faith in me.”

Moss captained the Australian over-35s side at the 2010 Maccabi Australia International Games, playing under his close friend and mentor Ian Gray, who passed away later that year.

“I’d like to pay tribute to Ian who played a massive role in getting me to where I am today,” Moss said.

“And I’m very proud of my family heritage and the religious part of my life. I have some very fond memories at the Maccabiah Games and it’s an honour to be the second Jewish coach behind Miron.”

Moss is confident his new side can defend their A-League title from last season, admitting there will be only minor changes at the club.

“We’re in a transition period, having lost a few players and now a new coach,” Moss said.

“But the changes will be subtle and the players know that, and I helped build the structures and methods with Graham, which have been fantastic.

“So I’m looking forward to the year ahead and hopefully we can succeed again.”

ASHLEY SHENKER

Photo: Keith Radford

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