Andrew Kable looks forward to getting some family time back. He will spend a special Father’s Day with his wife and children on Sunday, but he doesn’t know what they have in store yet. He caught up with sports reporter Matt McLennan to talk about what he’ll do with himself after moving on from coaching the Hastings Valley Vikings.
SUNDAY will be a special Father’s Day for Andrew Kable.
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Andrew will enjoy the day with his three children without the wanted weight of a successful rugby club on his shoulders.
He’s just pulled the pin on the coaching gig at Hastings Valley Vikings, and Andrew has gone out in style.
The Vikings triumphed against their cross-town rivals, the Port Macquarie Pirates, 28-24 at Oxley Oval.
The Pirates defended the premiership in reserve and first grade, and the club’s 20th anniversary made it all the more sweet. Both teams were undefeated. The closest any other side got was a 19-19 reserves draw with Pirates.
The Vikings have featured in all three Mid North Coast Rugby grand finals under his watch. They won two of them.
Earlier, he was involved with the Pirates.
“Essentially, I’ve been involved with rugby for the four years that we’ve lived here,” Andrew says. Adding to the load is representative coaching.
He begins planning in October and the rep season runs until May. “It’s a lot of time,” he says. “And a lot of time missed. It’s sort of a full time job outside of work. Coaching has certainly become more demanding.”
Sport runs in the Kables’ blood. Andrew’s father Peter was a rugby player. His wife, Lisa, plays netball, but Andrew only made his first game recently to cheer her on.
“I saw her play her first Monday night game here two weeks ago when she won the grand final,” he says.
His kids, 16-year-old Ellie, 10-year-old Hayley and Danny, eight, have a raft of sporting commitments between them.
The girls excel at swimming and netball. Danny is good in the pool, but he also plays league and union. That’s one coaching commitment Andrew will keep: Danny’s under 10s Hogs team.
He’s also stopping for non-sporting reasons. Ellie is about to embark on her Higher School Certificate.
“It’s an important year,” Andrew says. Sunday will be the first Father’s Day in “a long time” without any sports on. Andrew doesn’t know what’s in store. A picnic at Diamond Head with a spot of fishing could be on the cards.
“I look forward to it,” Andrew said. Andrew leaves behind a great coaching record which many would be envious of. “I’ve been pretty lucky,” he says. “In 12 years of coaching, I’ve been in seven grand finals and won four of them.”
The one loss was in 2013 when the Pirates won a tight one, 5-0. “It’s not bad considering they beat us 55-5 in the first game of the season,” Andrew says. “It was a good turnaround.”
Rugby is definitely strong in the Hastings.
“They’re excellent results as far as the town of Port Macquarie goes,” Andrew says.
