33 DAYS TO GO | Wantirna South junior president Kevin Van Grondelle 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?
Kevin Van Grondelle: Absolutely, for a start approximately 400 children were playing and learning about football.
We had six of seven teams compete in finals, with three grand finalists and two premiers.
Our Auskick program continues to go from strength to strength leading into our under-8s and under-9s which continue to expand into multiple teams.
We fielded our first girls’ team in under-12s whose coach won Youth Coach of the Year and we had our first under-17 side for a few years.
All of these are a result of stability of coaching programs, a strong community culture and collective effort.
Off-field, our facilities at Templeton continue to be refurbished and a redevelopment master plan has been commenced for our second ground at Wantirna Reserve. Another great year laying the foundation for continued growth.
Approximately how many teams do you think you will field in 2018?
KVG: 16 teams (from under-8-under-17 across boys and girls) as we expand out our girls teams and our hugely-successful Auskick program will run again on Friday nights.
What has the feeling been like around the club over the pre-season?
KVG: We have been planning and preparing for the introduction of additional girls teams based on the success of our under-12s last year.
We received a VicHealth grant for equipment, the facilities have been upgraded to cater for the needs of the girls and we’ve appointed quality coaches.
On-field, a number of new recruits have joined us across all age groups, whilst the competitive teams have been working on their fitness and skills and our non-comps will soon commence, leading into what will be another great season.
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?
KVG: Hard to say, as teams have changed grades based on last year’s successes. Our focus is on constant improvement over a period of time not just one year, but potentially our under-11s who have been building over the non-comp years or our under-17s who came so close last year as bottom ages but the competition will be tough.
Is there a particular age group of players that you need as soon as possible to fill a team ahead of Round 1?
KVG: Our newly-established girls’ teams in under-10s, 14s and 16s are looking for more numbers, whilst our boys in under-10, 11, 15 and 17 have some spots available, which would round out those teams nicely, if people are looking to join a club.
If any players are interested in playing for your club this season, what do they have to do?
KVG: Email us at enquiries@wsjfc.org.au or registrations@wsjfc.org.au plus they can go to our website for further information www.wsjfc.org.au