Nyngan Tigers captain-coach Stewart Mills has reluctantly relinquished his leadership role with the club but said the club was still close to his heart.
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Mills said he made the tough decision not to coach again in 2018 for personal reasons and he will move back to Sydney.
However the former NRL player isn’t lost to the Group 11 club. He has offered to come back and play some games if the club needs his help and said he would love to coach them again in the future.
“I’ve loved every minute of my time here. It’s been an unreal experience for myself and I have learnt a lot about myself out here,” he said.
“I would really love to do another year but I decided I couldn’t commit to coaching them again. I will sign up to play again and if they need me I will come out and play.
“I won’t coach anywhere else. The only place I would coach would be Nyngan.”
The past season has had a massive impact on Mills. He admitted when he arrived he had no idea what to expect. Born and bred in Sydney, the move to a town with just 2000 people was a massive change but one he embraced.
“Nyngan really made an impact on me. I’d never even heard of the place before coming out here. It’s a very little town and there’s not much to do here but it’s really special,”
The only place I would coach would be Nyngan.
- Stewart Mills
“The people here are incredible and I want to thank everyone from the club and the entire community for all they did for me.”
Mills led the Tigers to a grand final appearance against Dubbo CYMS and while they lost 34-18, he believes they have more to offer.
“I didn’t know what to expect when I first arrived and based on the numbers at training, I didn’t think we were even going to get a team but once the season started, it was clear we had something special,” he said.
“I think this year has laid a platform and with most of the players coming back I think they can be a real danger.
“CYMS are a good team but they aren’t unbeatable and I think Nyngan can really put it to them.”