With the recent announcement of the reboot of the National Flag Football programme and the appointment of Coach Poznanski as the Head Coach of both the Wolfhounds Flag Football men’s and women’s teams, it is only fitted for Coach Poznanski to pick a crew of experienced coaches to work with in building two competitive teams to take on other National Flag Football teams in an exhibition tournament in the autumn (2020, details TBC) with the ultimate aim to enter both teams in the IFAF European Championships in 2021.
Without further ado, the Wolfhounds Flag Football Coaching Crew.
Coach Poznanski (GP), while being a keen follower of American Football for more than twenty five years and a fan of sport in general, did not get his first taste of flag football until seven years ago – after being involved in an array of sports ranging from Olympic handball, basketball, or volleyball, amongst others. He had his first try for the Dublin Vipers (formerly Dublin Titans), was hooked right then and hasn’t looked back. While playing for the Dublin Vipers, he took on the position of Director of Flag Football for IAFA from which he recently stepped down from five years of service. Alongside being an IAFA director, Coach GP also coached the DIT Spartans, UCD and South Dublin Panthers flag football teams while also working as a Coach Developer for Sport Ireland for the past 2 years.
Coach Burrows is a sports and well-being coach with 14 years of experience working with recreational, performance pathway, Olympic, Paralympic, and professional athletes. She is currently the Player Development Manager for the Professional Footballers Association of Ireland where she offers career planning and well-being support to professional soccer players. In her spare time Emma is the assistant head coach to the South Dublin Panthers senior kitted team.
Coach Zboyan (pronounced zee-boyan) hails from Seattle (Washington, USA) and is an avid Seahawks supporter. Coach Zboyan played both kitted and flag football throughout his school and college years. After moving to Ireland in 2012, Todd kicked off his Irish flag football experience with a two-year stint with the Dublin Vipers which included a National Championship winning Emerald Bowl III in 2017. Coach Zboyan then went on to establish the Dublin Bay Raptors in 2018 currently playing in the Emerald Bowl league, leading the team as head coach and quarterback.
Coach McCann began his journey in American Football with the Dublin Dragons back in 2013 and has never looked back. Heavily involved in the re-brand and restructure of the team, he’s one of the founding members of the South Dublin Panthers. In that time, he’s been involved with both the kitted football team and the flag football team as a player, coach and team manager. In 2019 he took over as General Manager of the Panthers and became a defensive coach for the kitted team, helping them to their first Shamrock Bowl Final in their history. He also took over as Head Coach of the flag team, leading them to their most successful flag season to date.
Coach Shaw is a Dallas Cowboys afficionado from Ballyclare, Northern Ireland. Coach Shaw has been involved in American Football since 2015 when he became Head Coach of the Coleraine Elks Flag Football team. After leaving the Elks Coach Shaw became involved with the Belfast Trojans as a positional coach with their kitted team winning a national championship with Shamrock Bowl XXXIII in 2019. He also established the Belfast Trojans first flag football team and was team manager for their inaugural season.
Coach Barnewell was a late starter to playing American Football at 37. Having previously been part of league winning teams in soccer and tag rugby. Playing both special teams and defence for the South Dublin Panthers kitted team he had his season capped playing in Shamrock Bowl XXXIII. With a passion for health and fitness, ‘Barney’ then took the reigns as strength and conditioning coach while also playing centre for the Panthers flag football team as they registered their most successful season to date.