The start of the 2019 Shute Shield season is just a few sleeps away and with eight of 11 clubs to be led by rookie coaches this season, there is a lot of unknown heading into round one. Will Sydney Uni continue their dominance, are Easts ready to take the next step and can an Eastwood legend turn his side back into a premiership force? We spoke to all 11 Shute Shield coaches to find out what we can expect from their sides in 2019. Eastern Suburbs Eastern Suburbs returned to the playoffs for the first time since 2013 last year but couldn’t match eventual premiers Sydney Uni in the latter stages of their clash on the opening weekend of the playoffs. Despite that, the Beasties were easily one of the competition’s biggest improvers in 2018 and with a similar roster back on deck in 2019, Easts will like their chances of playing deeper in the Shute Shield finals series this season. CLICK HERE TO READ FULL SEASON PREVIEW Eastwood Like Forrest Gump’s box of chocolat