Interleague squads gets down to business

BFNL interleague football coaches Simon Rosa and Jason Stevens have praised their respective squads buy-in in the lead-up to their 23 may showdown against Ovens and Murray at the QEO.

The senior and under-18 squad went through their paces for the first time last week at Camp Reserve in Castlemaine with both coaches thrilled with the eagerness and commitment on show.

Both squads hit the track for the second time at Dower Park earlier this week, with teams to be finalised after a pair of sessions next Tuesday and Thursday at the QEO.

While several players were missing from the announced training squad of 53, senior coach Rosa was just thrilled to get down to business on the training track last week.

“It was a great first night. It’s been a long 12 months,” he said.

“I think myself, the coaching group and all the players have been looking forward to this for 12 months.

“Just from our sheer numbers on the track, I think you see a real buy-in from the playing group.

“We announced a squad of 53; a lot of apologies, but all accounted for and about 32 on the track tonight.

“It was a fantastic turnout.”

Rosa, who coached the senior team for the first time last season in an extra time loss to the Victorian Amateur Football Association, believes the expanded squad has given his coaching team ‘a strong foundation to build from’.

Appealing to him as the coach is the chance for the BFNL to test itself against one of country Victoria’s undoubted strongest leagues in back-to-back interleague games, with a return clash already scheduled next season as an O&M home game.

“We’ve got a really short period to connect well and come together to take on the Ovens and Murray,” Rosa said.

“It’s something that’s excited me since this was announced; the boards have worked really hard to make these two years happen.

“We haven’t had the opportunity to play the Ovens and Murray for 29 years, so it might be an opportunity we would never have got in the old rankings system.

“We’re just really excited to, one, get the opportunity, and two, for what can happen in the two hours on the QEO on 23 May.”

Starting with a smaller squad of 38 players, Stevens is excited by what the league’s young guns can produce against a quality Ovens and Murray.

His squad’s height and clean ball use were two of the biggest positives to emerge from the first training session.

“They were quiet and it took a bit of time for them to interact and come together as a group, but they were really impressive,” Steven said.

“There was a lot of height in the group, which is good to see, but all also other attributes out on the field.

“It was a little bit wet here to start the session in Castlemaine, but there was really clean use of the ball and that’s a positive.”

With the squad containing several players already playing senior football, like Rosa, Stevens said the under-18s were looking forward to the challenge of taking on one of the state’s powerhouse leagues.

“We want to obviously showcase the talent we have in our group, but the way we play is the important part for us,” he said.

“Bendigo footy has been built on having a competitive edge around the way that we play; we want to move the ball fast.

“It’s an interleague game, so we want to showcase the skills of players, but have a bit of grunt about the way that we play.

“We think our playing group will be able to bring that.

“I know the O&M play a great brand of footy, so it will be great to see two great country leagues going against each other.”