The East Burwood Rams are back in Division Three following promotion in 2019 and are ready to finally make their mark.
Following the disappointment of the club’s Division Four Grand Final loss to Fairpark in 2019 and the unused 2020 preseason, it’s seemed that things might not come to fruition for the former Division One powerhouse.
But senior coach Stuart Wynd is staying positive and says the year hiatus was a great opportunity to take stock and appreciate just how important being part of a footy club is.
“2020 was obviously a pretty tough year with no footy, so just getting the boys back to training has been good,” Wynd said.
“We’ve only sort of just started (preseason)…we did a little bit before Christmas but not too much so we’re just sort of warming up into it and over the next six weeks we will pick it up quite a bit.”
Not interested in dwelling on the past, Wynd is looking to the season ahead with a focus on proving his side is capable of winning in a higher division, although he admitted there might be some extra feeling in the match-ups with Fairpark.
East Burwood lost the Division Four Grand Final in 2019 to Fairpark
“While the Grand Final was disappointing, that was two years ago now so you’ve got to move on pretty quickly,” he said.
“We’ll come up against them (Fairpark) a couple of times during the year at this stage, so there might be a little bit extra in the game when we see them…but we’re just looking forward to playing in a higher division.
“We think we’ve got a pretty good young list so I think we were certainly ready to go up but only time will tell.”
The Rams have managed to successfully retain the bulk of their list and a sizeable group of its young players are expected to have strong seasons.
We’ve got a really good spread of ages in our list,” Wynd said.
“From 20-year-olds to a few 30-year-olds who are still playing some really good footy for us and there’s also a group of 26-27-year-olds that should be coming into their collective prime.
“We’re pretty excited…but it’s a pretty even competition so if your list holds together and you limit your injuries, I think everyone in the competition has got a pretty good chance.”
Injuries happen, so depth will be key for the Rams in 2021.
Wynd conceded that his side is still trying to finalise some recruitment deals in order to ensure his list has the depth to continue to compete if/when injuries hit.
“We recruited quite a few midfielders in 2020 which have stayed, we lost a few recruits unfortunately, but we picked up one really good one from Balwyn in Shaun McDonald – he’s going to add to our midfield and I think we’re going to be pretty strong through there,” he said.
“We’re talking to another couple of guys and hopefully we will find out (if they’re coming) in the next week or so, but if we get them that will pretty much see us out and we’ll be happy with our list.”
Most players spent a large part of 2020 confined to their homes, so fitness levels have likely been an issue for every club league-wide, however, following a late start to preseason the Rams are could be particularly vulnerable in this area.
“I think like most clubs they’ve come back a little heavier than I’d like but we’ve got plenty of time to shed a few kilos,” Wynd said.
“Having been locked up since March and not being able to do a hell of a lot…you lose a bit of interest.
“Going into the 2020 season, I think the season got called off on the day of our first practice match, so we had really high expectations and we were all fit and ready to go so that was a bit of a shame.
“We certainly don’t want to go up and make up the numbers, every club at the start of every season would like to think that they’re going to be a genuine chance to be competitive and we think our best footy will stack up against most of the sides.”
Division Three is notoriously competitive.
In 2019 – excluding the undefeated premiers in South Belgrave – any side could beat any other side on a given day.
“The bottom sides in fourth division, you probably knew that you could beat them even if you were playing below your best, whereas that’s not going to happen this year,” Wynd said.
“Unless you’re playing at your best every week than you’re unlikely to win.
“Only time will tell, but we’re pretty confident that we’ll give most sides a pretty good run for their money.”
Wynd highlighted his side’s youth as a key reason for this confidence.
The Rams reserves and under 19s sides have been notoriously strong for years now and some of those young guns are beginning to come through and will demand senior selection.
“Boys like Lachie Gould, who has been with us for a couple of years and are getting better every week, will be the difference” Wynd said.
“Aiden Stephens, he’s another one, those bodies are really starting to mature and they were good players for us last year and they’re a couple who I think could really stand up.
“We’ve got some guys in our under 19s that could walk in and play senior footy or us, so we’re hoping to bring a couple of those guys through too.
“Our under 19s are exceptionally strong, there’s ten players in that side who we could choose from who I think could play senior footy right now and some in our reserves too – we’ve got plenty of depth there.”
East Burwood start their season hosting Whitehorse Pioneers on the 10th of April under lights at East Burwood Reserve.