The championship-winning Coach of the Year has made a call on his future

Craig Carley will lead Goulburn Valley Suns into VPL1 after signing on for 2027, capping a remarkable few days, and several years, for the Championship-winning head coach.

The Suns confirmed Carley will remain in charge shortly after he was crowned the 2026 VPL2 Coach of the Year, recognition that follows a season in which he guided the regional club to the championship and promotion.

HIGHPRESS FEATURE: How GV Suns rebuilt from the brink - without abandoning what they believed in

“While (the) award is deserved recognition of an outstanding season, Craig would be the first to tell you that the success belongs to the entire playing and coaching group,” the Suns said in a statement. “That humility, and the belief he has in the people around him, is a big part of what makes him the coach he is.

“What Craig has helped build over the past few seasons goes well beyond results. His commitment to developing players, belief in local talent and genuine investment in this Club and our region have been a huge part of the progress we’ve made.

“There’s plenty to be proud of, but there’s also plenty still to do. With a new challenge waiting in VPL1, we’re incredibly pleased to have Craig leading the group into 2027.”

It represents another milestone in a transformation Carley recently detailed to HIGHPRESS.

Reinstated as head coach following the club’s relegation in 2022, he helped rebuild a Suns program he described as having been “close to being on its knees”.

Rather than abandoning the club’s identity, Carley doubled down on it. The Suns placed their faith in regional talent and their junior pathway, eventually putting together an extraordinary unbeaten run during a breakthrough 2026 campaign.

“You shouldn’t have to leave a regional area at 14 or 15 years of age to have an opportunity to play at a high level,” Carley told HIGHPRESS recently.

That philosophy will now be tested at the next level. Carley has spoken about creating a sustainable program capable of providing a genuine pathway from the Suns’ juniors into senior football, while playing the “brave, aggressive, front-foot football” that helped carry them out of VPL2.

For Carley, promotion was never intended to be the end point.

“We want to see how far this club can go,” he told HIGHPRESS. “But we want to do it the right way.”