Local football’s worst-kept secret has been confirmed – Leopold great Sam Scott will be the next coach of Bellarine club Portarlington.
The three-time premiership Lion has signed a three-year contract only weeks after the initial approach from president Steve Cogger.
Scott, a senior assistant at Leopold under Luke Kelly, fills the void left by the departure of Darren Findlay, who departed the Demons only seven rounds into a three-year deal earlier this season.
The 31-year-old will continue his impressive playing career, which includes ten VFL games with North Ballarat, in the red and blue.
“I’ve been interested in moving into coaching for a couple of years now and have had a few clubs reach out in the past two years,” Scott told K rock Football.
“Steve gave me a call, and we had a coffee and then a couple of other conversations, and I just fell in love with their process and their community, being very similar to Leopold.
“And I just thought now is a great opportunity for me to move into coaching.
“It’s something I’ve been looking forward to doing post my football playing career, and I think now is a nice opportunity to transition as a player and coach as well next year and beyond.”
Despite 31 years without a finals appearance, Portarlington has returned to relevance in the Bellarine, with five wins so far in 2025 the club’s best return in a decade.
Scott is keen to help the Demons take the leap into the top five and believes the work being done off the field has laid the foundations for on-field success.
“They’ve obviously been through a lot in the past 30 years, and they don’t shy away from that,” he said.
“And I think their administration in the past two to three years has really built such a positive environment around the club, and there’s some real joy and excitement in the community.
“The people I sat down with over the past few weeks have just really impressed me, (with) what they’re bringing culture-wise to the club and their big sense of community.”
After starting his football journey in Leopold’s Auskick program, Scott admits it was tough to tell his Lions teammates that he would be departing Memorial Park.
“They were so good about it,” he said.
“They know that it’s time that I take something else on and progress my coaching career as well.
“As hard as it was, the boys were fantastic about it.”
Scott has begun to make contact with the current playing group and has had a conversation with caretaker-co-coach Nathan Storer to discuss what his involvement could entail in 2026.
However, he remains committed to helping Leopold chase a third consecutive premiership for the first time in the club’s history.
“Leopold has been fantastic in letting me continue my role as senior assistant,” Scott said. “So it’s all Leopold until the end of our season.
“Hopefully, we get the opportunity to still do something really special this year.
“And then once the season’s finished, I can start to look forward to 2026.”
X: @krockfootball
