They say a change is as good as a holiday. 

If that was to be applied to the North Geelong Warriors, then the Geelong based outfit is enjoying an extended “getaway” in the NPL 1 competition.

After the Elcho Park outfit was forced to part ways with its previous coaching duo of Ante and Ivan Skoko mid season, the appointment of new “gaffer” Micky Colina has seen a remarkable resurgence at the club, with the Warriors on the verge of securing promotion to Victoria’s top flight for the first time since 1997.

On the back of an unbeaten 10-match run consisting of nine wins and a draw - which includes a 3-0 thumping of top-team Avondale Heights last weekend - Micky Colina was this week duly recognised with the Winning Edge Presentations Coach of the Month (Rounds 17-21) award.

FFV's Tonci Prusac spoke to the high achieving, yet level-headed North Geelong coach - Micky C, as he is affectionately known - who spoke about his past coaching experiences, the prospect of promotion to NPL as well as his plans for the future at the ambitious Geelong club.

TP: Micky C, what's it like to be nominated the NPL Coach of the Month? 

MC: I’m pretty humbled to be honest. I’m always one for the team and not individual recognition. It’s the players who truly deserve the award, to be quite frank. Somehow, I feel that there are many others here at North Geelong that should share the award.

TP: Tell us a bit about your coaching history?

MC: I ended my playing career at an amateur club in Melbourne called HNK Gospic Bears, where I also coached the senior side from 2007-2010. That was the start of my senior coaching career.

In 2011 I moved on to current NPL side, the Melbourne Knights, where I was appointed the U21s coach. The following year I returned to the club where I spent virtually my entire playing life, the St Albans Saints. I was the senior coach there for the 2012 and 2013 seasons.

Earlier this year, I was the U21s coach at rival NPL 1 side Richmond SC, before coming to Geelong in June of this year.

TP: All the talk at Elcho Park in recent weeks has been around promotion to the NPL. Following last week's sensational 3-0 win over runaway league leader Avondale Heights, the excitement around the club has reached fever pitch. What effect has this had on the feeling inside the dressing rooms? 

MC: The boys, naturally, are aware of the excitement and the current, enviable situation they find themselves in. It’s human nature, I guess, for everyone to start thinking about promotion when we find ourselves three points ahead in outright second spot, and with a game in hand.

Nonetheless, the race is far from over and we still have a lot of work to do. There are six games to go and not one of those will be easy.

The lads are focused and committed, no less than they have been since I arrived. We are trying our best to avoid getting caught up in all the hype and keeping ourselves grounded and focused on one game at a time. 

TP: Back in your playing days at St Albans Saints in the old VPL, you were a rather tough, uncompromising defender. This current crop of players at North Geelong seem to have adopted a similarly tough, ‘take-no-prisoners’ approach to their playing style. Is this something that you have specifically worked on since arriving at Elcho Park?

MC: I am a fan of honest, hard working, committed players, who try to play football as often as possible but never take a backward step in a challenge. This is something that I have highlighted to the lads and so far every one of them has shown the potential to deliver this type of performance weekly. 

We are always trying to get better and it is still a work in progress. We just have to maintain the belief that we are capable of winning, every time we step out on to the pitch. 

TP: Since your arrival in Geelong, has there been any pressure to perform and has that pressure gradually increased in intensity as a result of the unbeaten run?

MC: Not at all. Well, not yet anyway. The club, the staff and the supporters have all been great. All they want is an honest performance from the team and a level of football that they can be proud of. I think this is a fair expectation.

TP: Let’s be completely honest here. What, if anything, stands in the way of North Geelong getting promoted to the NPL in 2015?

MC: Honestly? Nothing other than the Whittlesea Ranges this Saturday at home, followed by Moreland Zebras, Richmond, St Albans Saints and Brunswick City.

TP: Assuming the Warriors do get promoted to the NPL, what will it mean for the club and the city of Geelong as a whole? 

MC: If that was to happen, I think it would be great for the club to be part of the highest football competition in the state. As a club, we have been there before, in the old VPL from 1992 to 1997. 

I think promotion to the NPL would certainly lift the profile of the club to another level. As such, the city of Geelong – Victoria’s second largest city - would become a far more significant player in the football landscape of Victoria, which is what the purpose of the NPL has been from the outset.

In the end, it can only be a good thing for the sport of football in the entire Geelong region. 

TP: Finally, if North does get promoted to the NPL next year, will you be there again at the helm? 

MC: Let’s see what happens after Round 26. Maybe by then, nobody will want to know me! But in all seriousness, if the club will still have me I’d be more than happy to stay here at Elcho Park. Trust me, the drive down the Princes Highway from my home in the western suburbs is very relaxing! 

The Winning Edge Presentations Coach of the Month covers both NPL and NPL 1 and is selected by FFV.