FORMER Newcastle Jets captain Ruben Zadkovich says he will be forever grateful to Broadmeadow Magic for the apprenticeship that has helped him become Perth Glory's head coach at the age of 35.
Zadkovich will spend his second game in the hot seat when Perth host Newcastle at HBF Park on Wednesday night (9.40pm kick-off, AEDT), after being appointed the Glory's caretaker manager when Richard Garcia was sacked last week.
The former midfielder, who played in 97 A-League game for Newcastle between 2010 and 2014, kicked off his coaching career with the Magic after injury prematurely ended his playing career at the age of 29.
After three years with Magic, including their 2018 NPL grand final win, Zadkovich took over NSW NPL club Hills United, and was then offered a position on Perth's staff as youth-team and academy coach and an A-League assistant.
Less than 18 months later, he finds himself in charge of Perth's No.1 team, who are last on the ladder by four points after 17 games.
Zadkovich said his time with Magic was a huge step in his career development.
"It was a very important period for me in my coaching journey," he told the Newcastle Herald.
"Broadmeadow Magic are obviously a fantastic club and it was a great experience.
"I was only 30 or 31 and coaching guys who were older than me, like John Majurovski, who were also good friends.
"So it was certainly a steep learning curve, but I was always of the mindset that I should coach them not as an NPL club, but aspiring to professional standards.
"I was able to run that club as if we were semi-professional, not amateurs.
"It was a good period for me to shape my ideals and philosophies that I thought firstly the club needed, and also that would challenge myself to grow and learn.
"It was a great time for me and I have great memories, and I'll always be grateful they offered me that opportunity."
Zadkovich said he had been offered the Perth job until the end of this season but had been assured he would be considered for a long-term tenure.
"Obviously the CEO and owner want to see some improvement in performance, but there is already a plan in place for beyond this season," he said.
"And that's definitely my ambition, to be here a lot longer than that."
While Zadkovich has fond memories of his time with the Jets, he hopes to put a dent in their finals hopes tonight.
After back-to-back wins, the Jets are three points behind the top six.
"When I cross the white line as a player or as a coach it's always been the same - you play football to win irrespective of the circumstances," Zadkovich said.
"Newcastle is a fantastic place, I have a lot of really close friends and family there. It's a great club, it's a club that's close to my heart.
"But ... I hope that we send them home unhappy on a long flight."
