Farewell and Thank You to Doggie and Shmerls
Following the recent announcement that BFC Senior men’s team Head Coach Bluey McKenna will be moving on, the Senior Committee would also like to recognise the efforts of Michael “Shmerls” Shmerling and Dave “Doggie” Cafarella, who also will be vacating their senior men’s assistant coaching roles.
Both men have been tremendous servants for the BFC over many years.
Dave came into the club with Bluey in 2018 and has been a tremendous ally for Bluey and has forged great relationships with players, committee and members. Dave has a formidable football brain matched by tactical expertise that was embraced by the players. One of the most likeable guys you’ll meet, Dave often helped find jobs for players as part of his dedication to the role and the playing group.
Terry Lucas had this to say about Dave: “Doggie is a very selfless man who dedicated himself to the role of assistant coach with great enthusiasm and energy. He embraced the club and the players with a huge amount of warmth and heart. He was a player sponsor and was always willing to help the club in any way he could. He moulded our defence into the best VAFA B Grade defensive unit and the result showed in terms of points scored against us in the last two years. Change is inevitable in every club but I personally want to thank Doggie for his tireless contribution. The club and I will be forever grateful. He is a great Shark and I do hope to see him back at Shark Park in the seasons to come”.
Michael Shmerling came into the club in 2019 to coach the U17s and U19s. Despite enduring some tough years Michael has remained loyal to the club and the playing group. This year he took on the role of senior men’s assistant coach. When numbers were down, he even donned the jumper and played some great footy. When there was no umpires, he volunteered to help and grabbed the whistle. Shmerls has been a committed and loyal clubman.
Terry Lucas had this to say about Michael: “Shmerls epitomises a great clubman, a loyal shark. We appointed Shmerls to the dual role of 17s/19s head coach in 2019. The club had never tried that role before. Shmerls embraced the role with passion and enthusiasm and dedication. It required multiple training nights plus coaching on Saturday and Sunday. I will be forever grateful for his commitment. Shmerls had to battle through some tough years including the Covid years of 2020 and 2021. In that time he also managed to play a few thirds games to help out. In 2022 he became a senior men’s assistant coach. He also played reserves games and umpired games when we had no umpires. That’s selfless Shark commitment. Thank you Shmerls. You will forever be known as a committed Shark and we hope to see you at Shark Park in the seasons to come”.
The club would like to recognise the loyalty and commitment of both Dave and Michael and wish them all the best for the future.
They are great Shark people and are always welcome back at Shark Park.
GO SHARKS!