2 DAYS TO GO | South Croydon junior president Steve Hiney spoke to EFL Media ahead of the 2019 season, all thanks to Yarra Valley Water & Choose Tap.
Overall, were you satisfied with what the club achieved, both on and off the field, in 2018?
Steve Hiney: As a committee we were definitely satisfied with the club’s achievements throughout the 2018 season.
We were a relatively new committee with limited experience so to make it through to the first game was a great result. We were able to field two junior girls teams for the first in the club’s history and hopefully this area will continue to grow in the coming years.
A majority of our sides were competitive throughout the year and many of them made finals, the cherry on the cake came with the premiership for the under-15 boys!
Off-field we had an equally successful year with many new sponsors joining the South Croydon Junior Football Club. Some of the new sponsors were Kneadit Pizza, Xgolf Ringwood and a major sponsor McDonald’s Croydon – our football jumpers and training tops look amazing.
Approximately how many teams do you think you will field in 2019?
SH: At this stage we are looking at fielding approximately 11 team for the 2019 season.
What has the feeling been like around the club over the pre-season?
SH: There was a lot of change in the committee again this year with almost an entirely new executive committee and a few others staying around from last year to help steady the ship. I think like most years there is a general feeling of excitement throughout the different age groups, everyone loves when footy season comes back around!
We are one of the smaller clubs and our focus this year has been on retention of our players, continue to develop a strong culture and ensure that South Croydon is a club that families want to be a part of.
If you had to pick one, which team do you think is the club’s best chance of winning a premiership this season, and why?
SH: I am going to show a little bit of bias here because my son Josh plays in the under-12s which will be coached by Gerard McKeown.
This team has now been together since Auskick with minimal movement in or out of the side. The kids are really starting to gel together and they have a strong coaching panel behind them. There was a marked improvement last year (under Kev O’Donnell) and I believe the kids will continue on that strong upward curve.
Is there a particular age group of players that you need as soon as possible to fill a team ahead of Round 1?
SH: In our under-11s and would definitely love to see a few more new faces to ensure we have a strong competitive team this year.
If any players are interested in playing for your club this season, what do they have to do?
SH: Anyone that is interested in playing for the South Croydon Junior Football Club is welcome to attend any of our pre-season training sessions. The two easiest ways that we can be found is either on our Facebook page or by downloading Team App and searching for our club. Link to Team App below:
https://www.teamapp.com/
