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That's the John Nunn M.O ahead of his maiden season as Orange City first grade head coach as the long-time Lions mentor looks to lead the Pride through a rebuilding phase next year.
After a sensational season in 2020, City slumped to the bottom of the Blowes Clothing Cup ladder this winter, and while Nunn knows you can't reverse those results overnight, he's champing at the bit to give it a shot.
Nunn will fill the void left by Viv Paasi, someone who has set an incredibly high bar for all coaches at the club.
"I learned a lot off him," Nunn said.
"He's a very technical and dedicated coach, and his knowledge is second to none."
He won't throw the whiteboard out this pre-season, but Nunn looks to lean more closely to group fitness sessions in an effort to spark unity and enthusiasm among the playing group.
"We really want everyone to want to be there, and to be eager to participate," he said.
"For us we just want to fly under the radar and work hard behind the scenes."
Every coach has as idea of where they'd like to finish on the table throughout the season, and Nunn's no different.
"I think it'd be pretty foolish for any coach to say at this time of the year that they're going to come first," he said.
"If we're somewhere around the middle, I'd be pretty happy with that. We're building one year at a time and we're pretty confident with the players we've got."
There's certainly an exciting crop of players in the first-grade ranks, from dynamic five-eighth Traye Hodge, to the ever-reliable Josh Tremain.
Throw a few up and coming Colts into the mix and there's a capable crop of cattle at City.
"That Colts back line is pretty red hot," he said.
"There's a lot of players in that team who are a lot better than they think they are ... it's a pretty grounded group of players."
Nunn wasn't prepared to lift the lid on who else could be joining the club, but confirmed there's several new recruits in the works.
Not only is conditioning key for on-field performance, it plays a key part in injury prevention, which is something City could have used throughout a diabolical winter in the casualty ward.
"There's always going to be a freak injury here and there, and we did have some shockers this year in all grades," he said.
"But, there were also a lot of guys who didn't look after their bodies
"The good thing now is that through the pandemic, there's a lot of people who are getting more serious about exercising and trying to keep fit... you don't realise how much you miss training until it's gone."
As of now, there's no set time as to when the club will return to the training grounds for pre-season but it's expected that team sessions will be permitted as early as mid-October.
Until then, Nunn will continue the recruitment drive as the club is always on the look out for new players and coaches.
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