Join us for the inaugural Football Victoria Coaching Expo with an exciting line up of speakers!
The Football Victoria Coaching Expo is designed to provide coaches with an engaging and practical professional development experience, bringing together coaches from community, advanced, and female coaching pathways.
KEY DETAILS
- Where: The Home of the Matildas, and La Trobe Sports Stadium, Bundoora
- When: Saturday and Sunday, 3 - 4 October 2026 (9:00am - 5:00pm each day, doors open at 8:00am)
- Attendance at the Coaching Expo will contribute towards coach professional development requirements. Each day will provide attendees with 5 CPD hours, for a total of 10 CPD hours for those who attend both days.
CONFIRMED SPEAKERS
JUST ANNOUNCED
Andrew Boyens
Former New Zealand Football Technical Director
Andrew is a former New Zealand Football (NZF) international defender who played professionally in Major League Soccer for 6 years and represented the All Whites at youth and senior level including at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa after going through the Collegiate system in the USA. Following his playing career, he moved into coaching roles across the US and NZ club scene before transitioning into football leadership and technical development roles within NZ Football.
He recently finished up as Technical Director of NZF, a position he held for 7 years after being Head of Youth Football. His work has focused on improving player and talented player development systems, coach education, and long-term football participation outcomes, including involvement in large-scale pathway redesign and “whole of game” strategic initiatives.
Sean Douglas
FIFA Technical Expert / OFC E-Learning Manager
Sean Douglas is a coach developer and football educator with more than 20 years’ experience helping coaches and organisations learn across countries, cultures and sports. A former professional and international player, Sean is the E-Learning Development Manager at Oceania Football Confederation and has worked with FIFA as a Technical Expert in Coach Education since 2019.
He played a key role in the design and delivery of the OFC/NZF Pro Diploma, with a strong focus on leadership, culture, values, decision-making, and high-performance environments. Sean holds an AFC/FFA Pro Diploma, a Masters of Coaching from the University of Queensland, and has trained as a Master Coach Developer through the ICCE Coach Developer Academy.
Cory Innes
National High-Performance Strength and Conditioning Lead at Australian Athletics & Performance Support Assistant Manager - Physical Preparation at the Victorian Institute of Sport
Cory has over a decade of experience working with a number of high-performance athletes including Olympic, Paralympic and Commonwealth games medalists across a variety of sports and track and field disciplines as well as an Assistant Coach and S&C in the VPL and NPL systems. He holds a Master of Exercise Science from ECU and is accredited as an ASCA level 3 Elite coach, holds an AFC C Diploma and is currently completing a level 4 Athletics Coach through Australian Athletics.
Chris Adams
Football Australia Coach Education Instructor
Chris Adams is a coach developer and football educator with extensive experience in coach education across Australia. He has held senior coach development roles with Football West and most recently as Coach Education Manager at Football NSW, supporting the development of coaches across all levels of the game.
In January, Chris joined Football Australia as part of the national Coach Education team, where he now supports the ongoing development and delivery of coach education across the country. Passionate about developing people as much as coaches and players. Known for his collaborative and engaging style, he is committed to supporting coaches to be the best they can be to ensure positive football experiences are provided at every level of the game.
Jessie Smart
Disability Inclusion Advocate | Co-Founder of Inclusive Football | ASD Academy Coach | Master of Education candidate (Neurodivergence)
Jessie Smart is a disability inclusion advocate, ASD Academy coach and community football leader with a passion for creating environments where every player can thrive. Drawing on lived experience, practical coaching and postgraduate study in neurodivergence, Jessie works with clubs, coaches and sporting organisations to remove barriers to participation and build genuinely inclusive football environments.
Jessie is currently co-authoring The Whole Player, a practical coach education resource that equips coaches with evidence-informed strategies to support inclusion, belonging, communication and player wellbeing across community football.
Kevin Smart
Co-Founder of Inclusive Football | ASD Academy Coach | Community Football Leader
Kevin Smart is an experienced community football coach with more than 35 years of playing experience and over 15 years of coaching. Passionate about inclusive football, Kevin works with players of all abilities and is committed to helping coaches create welcoming, supportive and player-centred environments. Drawing on both extensive coaching experience and lived family experience, Kevin shares practical strategies that help every player participate, develop, and enjoy the game.
Jack Rolfe
Founder and Director of The Coaching Lab
Jack Rolfe is the Founder of The Coaching Lab, a coach development organisation helping football clubs, schools and National Sporting Organisations create better learning environments through games-based coaching.
Originally from England and now based in Australia, Jack has supported the England Men’s National Football Team, worked alongside countless Premier League clubs, and supported coach development across the AFL, Football Associations and National Sporting Organisations around the world. His MatchPlay Cards are now used in more than 75 countries, helping coaches create engaging sessions that develop better decision-makers and more confident players.
Jack believes that great sporting experiences shouldn’t be a lottery. His work helps coaches move beyond isolated drills, design practices that transfer to match day, ask better questions and create environments where every player is engaged, challenged and learning.
Annick Fokchak
FC Bulleen Lions Technical Director of Women's Football
Annick has a background as a sports professional and an extensive track record in managing high-performance pathways, elite athlete development programs, and community environments. Across key leadership roles at Football Australia and Football Victoria, she designed and executed comprehensive athlete wellbeing frameworks, parent workshops, and managed multi-state sporting events. Her work spans state teams and national youth teams, including the Victorian state U15-U18 team, the U17 Junior Matildas, the U20 Young Matildas and the Para-Matildas.
Currently, Annick works locally as a Football Technical Director in the women’s space, assisting in developing both coaches and players. Ensuring environments are grounded in a person-first approach, she specialises in building aligned stakeholder ecosystems that successfully transition coaches and youth athletes into elite, competitive pathways.
Ian Greener
FCA Chair Technical Committee
Ian holds an AFC A Licence holder, who has worked in the Australian National U17 program from 1991-2010 where he coached 23 players who went on to play for the Socceroos. His career has been based on coach education and player development but has also had experience working with elite players at the senior levels of football. He has a special interest and knowledge in sports science, having been associated with the Victorian Institute of Sport for 18 years.
Jarred Bester
Australian Teqball Federation President
The inaugural and current President of the National Teqball Federation of Australia - Jarred Bester has a professional background in Organisation Management, Systems Implementation and Project Management. Jarred holds several national and international sport accreditations acquired during involvement in Junior, Youth and Senior football coaching and administrative roles across amateur and elite organisation tenures. He currently holds sport specific coaching & officiating accreditations underpinning an understanding of the introduction methodologies & competitive execution requirements for the sport.
As President, Jarred has led the establishment of the National Teqball Federation of Australian as a legal entity operating as the Australia Teqball Federation (ATF), gained recognition from the International Teqball Federation (Known as FITEQ: Fédération Internationale de Teqball) and received official membership of the international sport governing body.
Neil Tate
U23 Olyroos Goalkeeper Coach and Coach Educator
Based in South Australia, Neil has been involved in Elite goalkeeper development for over 20 years. He has been part of the long-term development of goalkeepers such as Paul Izzo, Joe Gauci and Steven Hall. He has worked with the Australian Men's U17, and U20 teams and he is the current goalkeeper coach with the U23 team.
In his role as coach educator, Neil develops and delivers content for all Football Australia goalkeeping courses.
Tom Elliott
Football Victoria Head of Referees & Discipline
Tom Elliott is the Head of Referees and Discipline at Football Victoria, leading departments responsible for referee development & appointments, sporting integrity and judicial operations across the state. With more than 15 years of experience working in football development, administration, referee development and education, Tom has held roles across multiple state-level football associations in England before relocating to Australia and joining Football Victoria in 2022.
A former referee who progressed from grassroots football to the professional game in England, Tom brings extensive practical and leadership experience to the sport. He also serves as an A-League Men’s and Women’s match official observer for Football Australia, supporting the ongoing development of elite referees.
PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED
Bev Priestman
Olympic Gold Medal-winning Football Coach and Leader in Women’s High-Performance Sport
Bev Priestman is an Olympic gold medallist and one of the most respected coaches in women's football. Born in Consett, England, she brings a grounded, "blue-collar" work ethic to everything she builds.
She began her career in youth development, becoming Head of Football Development at New Zealand Football at just 26. After assistant coaching the England Lionesses to a fourth-place finish at the 2019 World Cup, she took over as head coach of Canada's Women's National Team in 2020, leading them to Olympic gold just nine months later, the youngest coach at the tournament to do so.
Over 15+ years across three continents, four World Cups, and three Olympics, Priestman has built a reputation for empowering leadership grounded in trust and accountability, most recently guiding Wellington Phoenix to a historic A-League Grand Final.
Gemma Lewis
Northern Region Football's Federation Development Manager
Gemma Lewis is a Welsh-born coach who has become one of New Zealand's most respected voices in women's football development. A former player who represented Wales internationally and turned out for Cardiff City domestically, she transitioned into coaching through New Zealand Football's elite pathways after moving to Auckland in 2014.
She built her reputation managing multiple national youth programmes, including assistant coaching New Zealand's Women's U-17 and U-20 national teams, before being named the inaugural head coach of the Wellington Phoenix's first-ever A-League Women's team in 2021. She guided that debut squad through a difficult maiden season played entirely away from home in Australia, an achievement that earned her New Zealand Football's Women's Coach of the Year award.
Lewis later returned to Wales to take up the Football Association of Wales' first-ever Women's and Girls' Pathway Manager role, before coming back to New Zealand in 2024 to continue developing the next generation of players and coaches as Northern Region Football's Federation Development Manager.
Thalita Ziero
Assistant Coach – Australian Futsal National Team
Thalita Ziero is the Assistant Coach of the Australian Women's Futsal National Team and a youth development coach passionate about helping young athletes reach their full potential. With experience as a player in Italy's top futsal leagues and coaching across Australia, she specialises in player development through game-based learning, performance analysis, and individualised coaching. Her philosophy is centred on creating engaging environments that develop technically skilled, tactically intelligent, and confident players for both sport and life.
Besart Berisha
A legendary figure in Australian football, Besart Berisha is one of the most prolific goal scorers in A-League history. A four-time A-League Champion and two-time Golden Boot winner, he enjoyed an outstanding playing career with Brisbane Roar, Melbourne Victory and Western United, winning multiple domestic titles and setting numerous league records. Since retiring, Besart has transitioned into coaching, bringing his wealth of elite playing experience, winning mentality and passion for player development to the next generation.
Peter Sturgess
Peter Sturgess is a globally respected coach educator and youth development specialist. He is the former National Lead for the Foundation Phase (players aged 5–12) at the English FA and the former Head Coach of the England Futsal National Team. With decades of experience in coach education and player development, Peter has been instrumental in shaping the FA's approach to grassroots football, creating engaging, game-based learning environments that foster creativity, decision-making, and a lifelong love of the game. He is an internationally renowned presenter who has delivered coach education programs across the world, inspiring coaches to rethink how young players learn and develop.
Boris Kubla
Boris Kubla is the Head of Coach Education at the Croatian Football Federation (HNS), where he leads the development and delivery of coach education programs across Croatia. A UEFA Instructor and UEFA Pro Licence Coach, Boris has extensive experience in coach development, football methodology, and elite coaching. He plays a key role in shaping the education of coaches at all levels, promoting modern coaching principles and best practice aligned with UEFA standards. An experienced international presenter, Boris is passionate about developing coaches who can create effective learning environments and positively influence player development.
SESSION OVERVIEW
- Presentations from leading Australian and international coaches and football experts
- Practical on-pitch sessions and off-pitch classroom learning
- Tailored learning streams for coaches across all levels of the game
- Access to industry partners, exhibitors, and football service providers
- Networking opportunities with coaches, Club Coach Coordinators, Coach Education Tutors, and football stakeholders across Victoria
- Actionable resources and insights to immediately apply in your coaching environment