	{"id":163518,"date":"2025-06-17T04:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T18:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/?p=163518"},"modified":"2025-06-12T11:24:00","modified_gmt":"2025-06-12T01:24:00","slug":"football-leader-to-depart-afl-barwon-at-seasons-end","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/news\/football-leader-to-depart-afl-barwon-at-seasons-end\/","title":{"rendered":"Football leader to depart AFL Barwon at season&#8217;s end"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>AFL BARWON&#8217;S head of football Michael Limb will step aside at the end of the 2025 season, following 23 years of service.<\/p>\n<p>Across more than two decades, Michael has played a pivotal role in shaping the game&#8217;s growth and governance in the Barwon region.<\/p>\n<p>He began his journey with the organisation under Football Geelong as junior football manager, before going on to be senior football manager, head of operations and most recently head of football.<\/p>\n<p>His guidance and football intellect has underpinned a period of substantial development, ensuring clubs and competitions continue to thrive.<\/p>\n<p>From managing competitions and player registrations, to overseeing disciplinary matters and implementing governance reforms, Michael has been across nearly every operational aspect of the game in the region.<\/p>\n<p>Reflecting on his time with the organisation, he said he was blessed to have met so many amazing and selfless people throughout his tenure.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Having started in 2003 managing the Junior Football Program three days a week, I had no idea that 23 years later I would still be in the organisation.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This journey has been extremely rewarding, to be a part of the incredible growth of football and netball in our region.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;I will truly value the friendships I have made and have the utmost respect for the individual contributions made by so many wonderful volunteers.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Thank you all for your support, I look forward to sharing a beer and a laugh somewhere at the local footy in the years to come.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>AFL Barwon region general manager Lisa Patterson paid tribute to Michael&#8217;s long-standing service.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Michael has been a cornerstone of football administration in our region for more than 20 years.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;His wealth of knowledge, calm and considered approach, and genuine care for our clubs and people have been invaluable.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;He has worked with humility, and his behind-the-scenes efforts have underpinned the integrity of our competitions. While we are sad to see him go, we are incredibly grateful for the legacy he leaves behind.&#8221;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>AFL BARWON&#8217;S head of football Michael Limb will step aside at the end of the 2025 season, following 23 years of service. Across more than two decades, Michael has played a pivotal role in shaping the game&#8217;s growth and governance in the Barwon region. He began his journey with the organisation under Football Geelong as [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-secondary understrap-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/news\/football-leader-to-depart-afl-barwon-at-seasons-end\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":201,"featured_media":163620,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-163518","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Football leader to depart AFL Barwon at season&#039;s end - Surf Coast Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"AFL Barwon head of football Michael Limb to step down after 23 years, leaving a legacy of growth and dedication to the local game.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/surfcoasttimes\/news\/football-leader-to-depart-afl-barwon-at-seasons-end\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Football leader to depart AFL Barwon at season&#039;s end - 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