The Cobar Roosterettes will have plenty of guidance on the field (and off) this season with accomplished footballer, Kayla Hasson taking on the coaching role of the Cobar women’s League Tag team.
Hasson has been playing League Tag for the past eight years, and three of those with the Roosterettes.
“During that time I added touch, union and league to the list also,” Hasson told The Cobar Weekly.
Growing up in New Zealand, Hasson played basketball and was pretty much forced to find another sport when she moved to Australia as there were no competitive basketball competitions where she was living.
“My fiancé plays a lot of footy so I decided to give it a go as well and never looked back,” Hasson said.
She excelled and last year was contracted to play rugby league with Wentworthville Magpies in the Harvey Norman Women’s Premiership competition (which is where they select their National Rugby League Women’s competition players from) and she’s just come off playing pre season with the Illawarra Steelers.
Hasson and fiancé Gerald Mackay (who’s been playing with the Cobar Roosters First Grade side for the past three seasons) have been living in Nyngan and have been travelling to Cobar to train and play each week.
Gerald is now working in Cobar and the couple are currently packing up to make the move to Cobar.
Hasson has previous experience coaching Nyngan High School girls teams and also Nyngan’s Under 16s League Tag side, who she coached to a grand final win.
Hasson said she’s very excited to take on the Roosterettes coaching role.
“I’m a bit of a perfectionist but will deliver more of a leadership role.”
She said she can bring experience, progression, competitiveness and energy to the team and also to the club this season.
“Everything I have learnt throughout the years, I want to share with the girls and community out here.
“A team culture within the girls and the other Roosters grades is something we will focus on as well,” she said.
Her main goals for the team this season are to progress players’ skills, to create a positive team culture environment and to get the girls to finals.
Hasson was appointed to the coaching role last week and will start running training sessions this week.
“I have been observing, luckily the girls have been able to combine group training sessions with the men but I’m excited to take over and see where we are at,” she said.
“It’s great to see a fair few girls have been committed to training every week.
“We’re keen to hit pre-season and get ready for the knock-out carnival which is coming up really quickly.”
Kayla welcomes any ladies who are thinking of playing a new sport or any returning players, to join them at training at Tom Knight Memorial Oval on Monday and Wednesday nights.
