The pieces of the new Crocs AFL leadership puzzle have started falling into place, with former reserves coach Matty Laskey taking over the reins of the club this month as president.

Laskey succeeds 2025-season president Rusty Bradley, who has stepped down, and joins new men’s coach Brad Cooper as the two freshest faces at the helm of the proud Port Douglas club.

Cooper was invited back after leading the team to six premierships during his former coaching stint, taking over from Nick Salter, who led the team to the 2025 minor premiership but missed out on the Grand Final.

Laskey says it is a really exciting feeling around the club at the moment, especially with having Cooper back on board.

“From previous experience he demands the best out of each individual, which is probably what we’ve lacked a little bit over the last couple of years,” Laskey says.

“It’s good to have Coops back on board, he’s doing plenty of work behind the scenes in getting some new people into the club.”

But Cooper is at this stage a bit wary of giving away what fans can expect in relation to the makeup of the team in 2026.

“It’s all in process at the moment,” he says.

“What I will say is that obviously we had some good wins last year, the basis of the side is there, and I’ve got some really good leadership around the club,” he says.