By Steve White
Balwyn are eyeing a return to finals football in 2021.
Despite a depleted line-up at times during the regular season, the Tigers went 14-4 in 2019 and managed a tilt at the premiership before bowing out in the post-season to a resurgent Blackburn in the preliminary final.
After a long lay-off the challenges of no senior football for nearly 18 months were numerous, but head coach Rodney Eade said the club has embraced the long game coming into preseason this year.
“It was an interesting one, for sure. However, we eased our way back into preparation before Christmas without being too demanding and then once that was over, we started to ramp it up a bit,” Eade said.
“It’s a slightly longer build-up this year as we start after everybody else. We just had to be careful from a soft tissue management aspect that we didn’t load the playing group up too quickly.”
Preparations are tracking well down at Cherry Road with the Tigers coming off of pre-season match-ups against NFNL sides Greensborough and Macleod, putting the squad through some early tests and some adjustments to the new rules.
“Both of those games were really good, solid hit-outs for us against two good sides. From a football perspective, the players were a bit rusty after having not played for such a long time. However, they were enthusiastic about just being able to get back on the park and play.”
“The thing I’m noticing at the moment is adjusting to the new man-on-the-mark rule, which has added another layer of learning in terms of adjustment to football this year. The game has sped up a bit, so now it’s just about making some adjustments to that.”
Despite several veterans departing at the conclusion of 2019, the Tigers have managed to retain most of their senior list that had previously committed to the club in 2020.
Former Brisbane Lions and Hawthorn player Jordan Lisle has signed on from Melton South in the Ballarat League, after winning the VFL’s Jim ’Frosty’ Miller Medal for the third time in 2019 with Port Melbourne. Ex-Casey player Paul Pattison has joined the club from Ellinbank and District side Catani and Tom Forster has signed on from the SANFL’s Norwood. Luke Williams will also don the black, yellow and white this year after signing from Gippsland Power.
Ex-North Ringwood ruckman Kyle Elliot is back for another EFNL stint after most recently playing in the NEAFL with Southport and will form a ruck tandem with Chevy Andersen. Kaden Schreiber (Oakleigh) and Vince Zagari (Sandringham) have also been added to the Tigers’ list this season, while Koolyn Briggs (Airport West), Luke Di Cosmo (Heidelberg) and The Basin’s Alex Young have come in through the transfer window.
Eade is looking forward to what the new additions will bring to this year’s campaign, with pace being a focal point.
“These guys have some good speed and skills and I think they will complement what we had before. In 2019 we were a very slow side and I think we did pretty well to get where we did, given the lack of speed we had in our squad.”
“I think we have improved our midfield this year and we will also be looking to improve our control of stoppages and the way we move the ball between the arcs.”
Balwyn will also field an Under’s side this year, giving them plenty of junior talent to draw on that they did not have the luxury of in the 2019 season.
“They’ve got a good squad this year that will give us some depth, and there’s about four or five guys in there I would have ear marked as potential candidates for senior football.
“I’d imagine we’d be giving quite a few of those players senior games this season as we have to look towards the future, particularly given the usual challenges of the catchment area we are in.”
Even with season 2021 just around the corner, uncertainty is still a theme across the league. However, Eade believes Premier Division football will again be very competitive this year with several teams potentially in the mix for finals.
“It will be hard to know where the competition will be this year, given it’s been nearly 18 months since the last game. Some teams have recruited well, and others have lost a few personnel, so it will be interesting to see who will be challenging for finals footy.”
“I expect a pretty even season to be honest. Teams that were near the top last season will probably be there again, and I’d expect some improvement from those teams that just missed out on finals last year which will make it even more competitive.”
Balwyn open their 2021 season away to Vermont at Vermont Recreation Reserve on Saturday 17th April 2021.