Seaton growing as Zebs leader

25/04/2023

In his second season as Captain of the Sandringham Football Club, Anthony Seaton is ready to take the next step in his leadership development.

The Zebras defender has taken important learnings from 2022 and the first five rounds of this season, and is looking to build on those directional foundations for the rest of the 2023 Smithy’s VFL Season.

“I think being Captain for the first-time last year has given me a better understanding of a Captain’s priorities. Last year I was trying to do too much myself and worrying about things that were out of my control,” Seaton says.

“Last year, on-field, I was worrying about everyone’s positions but now we’ve got a good spread across the lines with Milney (Tyson Milne) down back, Darb (Darby Hipwell) in the middle and Snake (Jake Lohmann) up forward so it lets me focus on my game a little bit as well”.

As leaders, Seaton and the other members of the Leadership Group are responsible for relaying the messages from Head Coach, Jake Batchelor, to teammates in the lead up to games and on-field.

The team has worked hard to narrow its focus and develop key areas of emphasis which will help to attain success this season.

“Batch has got the messages for us and it’s my role to keep the team switched on to those messages while we’re out on the ground. We’ve got our core values and behaviours aligned to that which are really measurable,” Seaton explains.

“After a game you can ask yourself: was I ruthless? Did I do everything possible? Never give up a chase, never miss a body sort of thing”.

The on-field club culture and identity isn’t the only thing Seaton is determined to enhance during his tenure as Captain - he’s also determined to shape a strong and supportive connection between the Zebras and the Southern Saints, as the VFLW side has been managed by Sandringham Football Club since 2020.

“Now that we’ve got the VFLW program up and running, it’s about building a connection between those two groups," Seaton says.

"It’s been great this year, we’ve had the women’s team at a couple of our games now and we’re trying to get the boys to more of the women’s games too. The double headers have been awesome and we’re seeing more and more of each other at President’s Lunches and events like that”.

Determination and drive push Seaton, an inner south-east local who currently works as a Tax Accountant for Yarra Lane. He joined the Sandringham Football Club in 2019, straight out of the Sandringham Dragons talent pathway program, and immediately knew he had to mature quickly and build more physical strength to adapt to the VFL level.

“I came straight out of school so I put on a bit of size as you need to in VFL. I’ve also gotten fitter and that’s been more of a focus especially in the last year or so,” Seaton says.

Indeed, getting fitter and stronger won’t just help Seaton to run out games better, it will also benefit his on-field leadership.

“There were a few times last year when I found myself tired out on the ground and couldn’t talk and instruct my teammates. I felt like during the preseason I needed to get better at that so I can actually run out a full game and keep talking to people and staying switched on,” Seaton admits.

The defender trusts his one-on-one lockdown capabilities but hopes to expand his role in the team and get more involved on the attacking end this season.

In 2023 Seaton is averaging 11 disposals per game across the half-back line which matches his numbers from last year, but he is coming off a very strong performance against the Carlton VFL side in Round 5 where he amassed a season high 15 disposals. Despite the heartbreakingly close loss, Seaton’s lockdown game is still in excellent shape as he was part a key part of the defence which kept Carlton to nine goals for the entire game.

By his own admission the team hasn’t been at the required level around the contest in recent weeks and while results haven’t quite gone their way, Seaton remains bullish about the team’s capabilities this season.

“We’ve got a strong list and the (AFL aligned) Saints have got some young players at the moment and a few more coming back soon so I’m really excited about our new game plan this year,” Seaton says.

“The game plan is faster and more free flowing; things haven’t quite gone our way yet but once they do the results will start to come and we’re definitely aiming for finals this year”.

Written by Matthew Santini - Sandringham FC Media

Photography by Mark Woods - Sandringham FC Media