It was a difficult decision to leave Sydney, but it was the decision Henry Playfair knew he had to make.
After spending seven years in various coaching roles at the SCG, following three as a player at the Swans and six at Geelong before his time in Sydney, the time was right to explore a different football program.
“It wasn’t an easy decision because I’d had such a great time in Sydney and been there for a long time,” Playfair told saints.com.au.
“I just knew in the back of my mind at different stages last year that it was time to for a change. For me to progress my coaching and progress my learning, I knew I had to go somewhere different so I was keen for a move.
“Fortunately there were some changes at the Saints and things aligned. I was really keen to get down to Melbourne, get amongst the AFL action and get to work.”
Playfair began his coaching career in charge of his own team, the Swans NEAFL side. He then took charge of Sydney’s forward line in 2012 – the year they beat Hawthorn in the Grand Final – before spending the past two years leading the Swans’ defence.
With Saints Senior Assistant Coach Rohan Welsh moving from defence to attack, Playfair has taken control of the defenders at Linen House Centre.
“My role is to coach the defenders, so I’m working really closely with the back six, although it’s not just a back six, there are 15 members of the
“So it’s working with that group really closely to make sure we’re preparing as best we can and also working with other coaches to work through how we want to play as an 18, as well as working with Richo really closely to make sure we’re executing what he wants.”
Playfair credited Sydney premiership coach John Longmire for not only leading him down the coaching path when he wasn’t sure what path he was going to
“John Longmire has had a really big impact on my coaching career – one of the biggest really,” he said.
“He got me into coaching, which I’ll be forever grateful for, at a time where I was uncertain about what I wanted to do.
“It’s a really difficult transition finishing playing, which has been your purpose for a long period of time and then looking for a new career was really daunting and uneasy.
“I didn’t really think about coaching, but he obviously saw something in me that he thought I could coach, so that very thought alone I’m really grateful for because he threw me that lifeline and it’s something that I really love. I owe him a lot in that respect.
“He also ran such a successful program in Sydney that gave me exposure to what a successful team looks like; what a strong club looks like; what a strong coach looks like.”
