Northern Territory Football League club PINT have told Shannon Motlop his services will no longer be required as Premier League coach next season.
It is a decision that has surprised many in the Top End footy community with Motlop recently leading the club to its inaugural finals appearance.
The Greenants are the newest team in the Premier League having joined the competition prior to the 2022/23 season.
The club has exceeded the expectations of many, especially those from outside the club.
A disappointed Motlop took to social media to thank everyone for the kind messages of support.
"It's not easy to have all your hard work ripped out from underneath and my heart was fully in it," Motlop said.
"The PINT FC have made the best decision for me and the people I've taken to the club, and in the end I welcome it with open arms and feel the relief.
"They believed I underachieved, which is a load of crap, and everyone knows we were tracking pretty well by playing finals in only our second season in the comp.
"They didn't see me winning (a grand final) for them."
PINT finished the 2023/24 season in fifth position on the NTFL ladder – with ten wins from 16 games – and lost an elimination final to Southern Districts by 26 points.
Motlop was appointed the club's inaugural coach in May 2022 after formerly coaching his junior team Wanderers, where he was able to take the Eagles from second last to a preliminary final during his tenure.
The former North Melbourne and Melbourne player brought a number of players across to PINT, including his brother and former Geelong and Port Adelaide star Steven Motlop.
"Everyone would have known how hard it was for us to leave Wanderers to go there but (despite) the runs on the board they suddenly have a crystal ball that tells them I can't win a premiership," Motlop added.
"They had me long gone well before they conducted a player review and (they) used the player review in a way that best suited their delivery of the bad news.
"I didn't make everyone happy, including the players, but it was my job to decide what was best for the team and I back my knowledge over most people at that club who have zero Premier League experience.
"While I loved the people that I met it's very hard for me to say this was a good experience."
At the time of being appointed PINT's inaugural coach, Motlop said that he was under no illusions that it was going to be a difficult job.
"I am aiming to finish as high as we can, but at the same time, we have to be realistic because we're taking a step up and it's going to be pretty tough," he told SEN Top End before the beginning of last season.
