Ricky Henderson thrilled to join Port Fairy as assistant coach

The 35-year-old former AFL wingman joins coach Dustin McCorkell's panel in a non-paying role after featuring in South Warrnambool's 2023 Hampden league flag.

He spent the past three years with the Roosters after retiring from the elite level in 2020 with 159 games at Adelaide and Hawthorn to his name.

Henderson was thrilled to join the Seagulls in his first coaching role.

"They have probably had their struggles over the last couple of years but you can see what Dustin's done, especially last year with the eight wins that they had," he told The Standard.

"I think they're trying to put a list together that we can do some work with and get them to a spot where we can improve the club and the standing within the league. It's an exciting time for the club and I'm looking forward to it."

The former Crow and Hawk knows it won't be easy stepping into coaching but hopes to progress through the ranks in time.

"It'll be a massive learning curve for me as well because I haven't gone down this coaching route before, so I'll try and learn as much as I can off the playing group and Dustin and the coaches out at Port Fairy as well," he said.

"I've got aspirations one day of hopefully being a senior coach in the Hampden league at some point but along the way I'm going to have to learn a fair bit. I'm looking forward to see what Dustin comes up with game-plan-wise and how he goes about it so it'll be very interesting."

The premiership Rooster said coaching was something that first piqued his interest toward the back end of his AFL career.

"Coming back down here to the Hampden league's been great for me and I've enjoyed the experience," he said.

"I always kind of wanted to stay involved in a football club and coaching was probably the next pathway. I'm excited by the challenge, especially stepping into a new club."

Henderson confirmed his playing days were "definitely over", bringing down the curtain on an impressive senior playing career spanning more than a decade.

He was grateful to go out on a high note with the Roosters and will look back on his career fondly.

"It was a great ride," he said.

"Twelve years in the AFL system, made a lot of good friends, learned a lot of stuff about football, hopefully which I can impart on the Port Fairy Football Club.

"In the last three years down in Warrnambool, South have been great for me and my family. They've been a great bunch of friends for me and all that sort of stuff. But it's time for me to kind of step out of my comfort zone and go to a new club and see what I can do there."

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