Dean Hoy oversees another Mountain Goats campaign

Hoy's been flogging trucks there since starting the job late last year. His previous job had require a lot of travel, and he had tired of the routine.

"Love it," he said of his new gig.

From his lived-in face to his toes, the 44-year-old is a man's man - an all-action character who has loomed large over Tamworth's sporting landscape for decades.

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Unsurprisingly, sport was a major factor behind his desire to be rooted to one spot work wise. Family was too.

"Sport's about mateship and competitiveness," the father of three said. "I keep doing it because that's what drives me."

"You're a long time retired ... so keep going while you can," he added.

Hoy - whose first-grade sports background includes soccer, rugby league, AFL and cricket - has returned as the Mountain Goats' player-coach this season.

The ambitious club commence their 2023 premiership campaign against Armidale City Westside at Gipps St on Saturday.

Hoy won't be there for the historic return of the Armidale clubs to the Premier League after a three-year absence precipitated by the clubs' issues with Northern Inland Football.

The veteran sportsman has three weeks remaining on a four-week suspension he received last season.

So instead of overseeing the Mountain Goats' first step, in what they hope will be a debut premiership-winning season, Hoy will play for the Moore Creek Marlins against Woolomin in a Peel Valley Bush Cricket semi-final at Attunga on Saturday.

Former Gunnnedah FC mentor Andy Cygan will oversee the Mountain Goats on the day, after joining the side this year as co-coach.

Cygan "can talk the talk, and walk the walk" when it came to soccer, Hoy said.

"He's brought a new dynamic to the club that's really important to us," Hoy added.

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