by Chris Cavanagh, Melton Leader
Melton Centrals will have the numbers to field a planned under 18.5s team this year in a move the club believes will benefit its senior team for years to come.
For the first time in nine years, the Centrals have entered an under 18.5s team in the Riddell District Football League and have had strong numbers on the training track under coach Anthony Rhodes during pre-season.
Centrals senior coach Brian Wheelahan said having the side has increased excitement levels around the club and would be a major positive for his own team going forward.
“That’s one thing we identified a couple of years back that although we were going OK and were quite competitive, to see the Riddell’s and the Sunbury’s and the Romsey’s having really strong junior programs, that’s something we need to aspire to,” he said.
“Hopefully in three to four years’ time some of those young guys come through and develop into senior footballers. That’s what we’re hoping.”
The coach said the seniors pre-season had also been tracking well despite the loss of some players.
Defender Socrates Kalas has announced his departure, while fellow backman John Tobin is headed to Sydney with work commitments and centre half-forward Josh Armstrong has accepted a coaching role at Melton South.
Wheelahan said that while the losses meant that the side could be short of talls, the club was in the final stages of securing “six to seven” new recruits.
After missing out on finals last year after a 2012 season that saw the Centrals break a nine-year finals drought, Wheelahan said a top-six finish was the expectation of his side in 2014.
“Anything short of a finals berth this year I think will be a bit of a disappointment”, he said.
Last Modified on 29/01/2014 11:40