An opportunity to further his career in the AFL industry has proven too hard for Nick Connors to resist, with the triple-premiership-winning St Mary\u2019s star the first confirmed departure from the GFNL premier.<\/p>\n
The 28-year-old has spent the past four years working with Fremantle in a recruiting and list management position that allowed him to remain in Geelong.<\/p>\n
However, Connors, who entered local football folklore for the goal that sunk Colac in the dying seconds of the 2019 decider, will head across the Nullarbor early in 2026 for a role at the Dockers\u2019 headquarters.<\/p>\n
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\u201cI just want to get a bit more involved in the football side of things and be amongst it inside the four walls of the club, which will offer some more opportunities to work with some coaches, just learn a bit more about the game, which I\u2019m obviously interested in,\u201d Connors told K rock Football.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy role will still have a fair bit of list and recruiting stuff, and then more stuff with the coaches around in the data side of things, which is where my skills lie.\u201d<\/p>\n
The holder of a master\u2019s degree in sports analytics, Connors agreed to the move in the days leading up to St Mary\u2019s upset GFNL grand final win over St Joseph\u2019s last month, not telling his tight-knit family until after the match.<\/p>\n
He first joined the Dockers as an intern in 2019, before securing paid employment following the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/p>\n
\u201cI pull all the stats in and try to figure out who\u2019s who\u2019s draftable from a numbers point of view,\u201d Connors said.<\/p>\n
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\u201cAnd then work in the trades and list strategy space.<\/p>\n
\u201cContracting, tracking that, making sure we\u2019ve got enough money to go after certain players. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of admin work, so to speak, but I also get to sit in the draft meetings. <\/p>\n
\u201cAnd when I get some time, I go and watch some VFL, AFL players as well.\u201d<\/p>\n