By Josh Ward
Down a division in 2021, the Magpies showed flickers of their true potential, a level they hope to meet more regularly in 2022 as finals beckon.
In its first season in Division 3 in a long time, the Magpies finished last year around the finals mark with five wins, five losses and one draw, which came all the way back in Round One against Glen Waverley.
It was a rather inconsistent year for them.
Despite picking up wins against minor premier Warrandyte and strugglers Fairpark and Glen Waverley, they still lost winnable games, including in the last game of 2021 against Whitehorse, where they blew a major quarter time lead to go down handsomely.
Senior Coach Kristian Bardsley recently said that preparation is in full swing ahead of this season.
“Like most teams you just prepare as best you can for the season and then once that happens, we’ll see how everyone’s going and what’s going on,” Bardsley said.
The Magpies have lost a few players this offseason, including experienced defender Adam Bronsgeest to Forest Hill and top goal kicker Tom Sonsie, who has moved to Division Two club South Belgrave.
“It’s disappointing to lose anyone, but we don’t worry now about what we’ve lost, we just worry about what we’ve got and what we need to do to make sure we’re competitive,” he said.
And the Magpies have gained plenty this offseason, with Ashley King, Dyllan Milligan and Dale Hehir returning to the club.
Whilst Hehir strengthens their forward line, Milligan their midfield/forward stocks and King their midfield/flank lines.
Bardsley believes King’s experience will be key for them this year.
“Ash is a good senior player, he’s very committed to his training, he works hard, so he’ll be a good role model for all the young kids coming through.”
However, despite King, Hehir and Milligan returning, Bardsley said they will be a young side again this year.
“We’re in a situation where we’ll be giving game time to a lot of the younger boys early on and hopefully, they can come through and develop”, he said.
Bardsley does believe though that the Magpies can challenge for finals, especially if their depth isn’t challenged.
“It’s going to be one of those one’s where we think we might be around the mark and hopefully pushing to play finals, but it’s going to come down to how well we go managing our injury list.”
They’ll kick off their campaign against Glen Waverley at home, with Bardsley excited about facing an improved Hawks side to kick off the season.
“Everyone wants to win their first game; we’ll hopefully be at full strength,
“They’ll be trying to push up the ladder like we are, so it’ll be a good contest.”