Former Western Bulldogs assistant coach Jordan Russell will return to the Club for the 2021 season as its VFL coach, following the departure of Club great Daniel Giansiracusa.

Russell was unfortunately unable to continue with the Bulldogs earlier this year due to the forced reduction of football department staff, caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

He has accepted an offer to coach Footscray, with the Club intending to continue fielding a standalone VFL side in 2021.

Giansiracusa will leave the Bulldogs for a new opportunity at the Essendon Football Club, after two decades at VU Whitten Oval as a player and coach.

“Gia has been a significant contributor to our program, from the initial drive toward our second Premiership, to the more recent evolution of our on-field performance,” said Bulldogs’ Senior Coach Luke Beveridge.

“He has been open and transparent in his aspiration to be a senior coach and has performed a variety of critical roles extremely well, which has hastened his growth and experience and has made him an attractive proposition for rival clubs.

“We are very disappointed to lose Gia, but acknowledge that his new role at Essendon is an important one to pursue on his journey to become a senior coach.

“We will miss his impact as a coach, but more importantly, we will miss his great character and the impact he has had on so many at our football club, and the friendships we have built with him.”

Giansiracusa played 265 games for the Bulldogs and stepped straight into coaching in 2015, initially looking after the forward line before moving into the stoppages and set plays portfolio.

In 2020 he was set to continue his role as Footscray’s VFL head coach for second consecutive year, but with second tier football cancelled he coached the Bulldogs’ match simulation games and worked on opposition analysis.

“I will be forever indebted to the Western Bulldogs Football Club.  Firstly, for giving me the opportunity to play 15 years for the Club, and then fostering and cultivating my coaching development over the past six seasons,” Giansiracusa said.

“Bevo has continually supported my coaching development by providing me with opportunities to explore different coaching roles.  I can’t thank him enough for his mentoring and guidance.

“To everyone at the football club, especially those in the football department, thank you for making each day at work a positive and worthwhile experience.  I have made life-long friends and created memories that will stay with me forever.”

Russell has enjoyed a long and successful involvement with the Bulldogs’ VFL program since the end of his 125-game AFL career in 2013.

Russell captained Footscray’s 2014 and 2016 VFL premiership teams and won the 2016 Best and Fairest, combining playing with a development coaching role at the Bulldogs.

“I’m thrilled to return to the Club, and am grateful for the opportunity to be back involved,” Russell said.

“It’s especially exciting to go back to where it started for me in a coaching sense, at the Footscray Bulldogs.

“To represent Footscray as a player and to achieve success in a leadership role was a great experience for me, and now to be able to return as the coach is something I can’t wait for.

“The Bulldogs place a strong emphasis on the alignment between its AFL and VFL programs, which makes this role even more enticing for my career pathway in coaching.”

Beveridge said the Club was excited to enable the opportunity for Russell to return to the Club.

“It was with significant heartache that we had to stand ‘Russ’ down when the cuts to soft cap spending became apparent,” he said.

“The silver lining to Gia’s exit is the fact we can bring Jordan back in to perform the critical role of coaching Footscray and not only nurturing our young players, but expediting their development for immediate results.

“Russ has established a strong foundation in the early stages of his coaching pathway and has a very bright future at our club, and the industry generally.  We are all very much looking forward to working with him again.”