ESSENDON
The Essendon Royals are delighted to announce that Michael Curcija will continue with the club in 2027 as Technical Director – Boys.
Curcija works alongside Head of Football Vaughan Coveny across our boys’ programs, putting the club’s playing style into practice on the training pitch, mentoring the coaches who deliver it, and shaping the structure that takes a boy from his first season in a Kangaroos team through to the Victoria Youth Premier League. This year he was also back on the grass himself, coaching our Under 12 A side, the Pre-YPL group that feeds directly into the BVYPL program.
A former Socceroo with more than 100 National Soccer League appearances, Curcija has been part of the furniture at Essendon Royals for well over a decade. He first joined as a player in 2004, returned in 2013 as senior men’s coach, a role he held through to 2019, and took on the technical director role at the end of that season. His partnership with Coveny goes back further still, to their playing days at South Melbourne, and the two clubs now contest the Coveny-Curcija Plate in their honour each year.
“It’s been a really, really good year for the boys and the girls. I’ve enjoyed getting back on the park and coaching the under 12 As,” said Curcija.
“There’s two aspects that are really great about the boys’ and girls’ juniors, and that is players playing for the first time and just building a love for the game, and then also a development pathway into our more elite programs.
“A big part of it is getting the message across to coaches and parents as well. Let the kids enjoy, let them make mistakes, learn from their mistakes, be their own person, be their own player. They’ll find their way and they’ll find their level. The most important thing is that they enjoy it.
“Whether they are A level, B level, C level, it does not matter to us. We just want them to enjoy the game for as long as they can, play with a group of friends. We just want to provide a good environment, teach them good values as well that they can take into their life away from football.”
With Curcija and Coveny both continuing into 2027, the Royals keep the two people most responsible for how the club’s football looks on a Saturday morning, and a clear plan for the boys coming through behind them.
A reminder that Expressions of Interest for our 2027 programs are now open, for both our Boys and Girls Victoria Youth Premier League pathway and our Community teams.