Coach Costello hopes to turn the tide with young Mustangs group

Costello took over the reigns as interim coach at the Mustangs following the departure of Mat Aitchison from the role late in the 2018 season, going on to coach the final four games of the year (including a win in his first outing against Waroona).

Now, after signing on full time, the senior coach will be looking to spearhead a campaign in which Mandurah returns to competitiveness after spending years languishing at the bottom of the standings.

But while the coach’s aim remains fixed on a finals berth, Costello acknowledged it was a step-by-step process that starts with getting players to simply “enjoy their footy” again.

“It all just starts with getting people to the club and getting players on the training track,” he said.

“We’ve got a good group of young kids coming through from our colts and transitioning to our league side so it’s our job to make sure they’re enjoying playing footy with the Mustangs.

“The end of last year gave me a real passion to go around again and I think the feel around the club right now is great, so we just need to translate that into on-field results.”

A stalwart at the Mustangs, Costello joined the club in 1996 going on to play 250 games in the red and white, winning best and fairest awards at the colts and reserves level and taking out a premiership in 2004.

He was awarded his life membership at the club in 2014 following stints coaching their reserves side, and has taken on the league role with renewed optimism.

“I love this club – I’ve seen it in good times and I’ve seen it go through the bad, so to help it get back to competing for a finals spot is important to me,” he said.

“Having said that, there’s only so much a coach can do. It’s up to the players whether we succeed or not, but I feel like if they buy in and enjoy the club we’ll be in good shape.”

The Mustangs have already suffered a blow to their 2019 campaign with captain and midfielder Zachary Podmore departing.

But Costello remains hopeful the club can improve on their two-win season in 2018.

“Losing [Podmore] obviously isn’t ideal but we love him at the club and we understand his situation,” he said.

“It also puts the captaincy up for grabs, so we’re excited to see who puts their hand up for that.

“We’ve got a pre-season camp organised already and we’ve had a pretty good response so we’re keen to see where the coming months can take us.”