On the back of promotion out of FV state league 5 west, West Point is excited for what lies ahead, but there is still plenty of work to be done.
After achieving promotion back in August, it seems like a lifetime ago for coach Tome Petrevksi, he said is keen to keep the momentum rolling.
“Promotion is always a good feeling, for the coach, for the squad, for the club, it’s our first promotion ever, so obviously, it’s something to celebrate but it feels like so long ago now,” he said.
“We’re deep into pre-season and the whole sentiment around the squad is how do we back it up. Because it doesn’t mean too much if we can’t back it up this season. So that’s absolutely what we intend on doing.
“Naturally there’s going to be an influx of players and trialists once you get promoted, it becomes more of an enticing destination or option for players. The good thing is, we’ve managed to keep all of our players from last season and added some quality as well.
“We’ve also got a handful of players that we’re looking to bring in but right now where we sit is at the squad selection stage. So we’re just working on fitness and finalising the squad, our aim is to have it finalised within the next couple of weeks for our Australia Cup game.”
After drawing the bye in round one, West Point is straight through to the second round, where it will face Barnstoneworth United on February 25.
“At this early stage of the season, playing a competitive game is good, it’s exciting, but it’s also a challenge with a lot of players not being at the required fitness level to play 90 minutes yet,” Petrevksi said.
“It’s probably a bit of a blessing and gives us a couple of extra weeks with some flexibility to work and getting through to the second round against a club from our league was another little surprise.
“We will prepare diligently for it… we’re excited for it, our first competitive hit out. All the players are buzzing for it.”
Beyond the Australia Cup hit-out, West Point focuses its attention to its first state 4 fixture in late March, however Petrevksi said there is still a lot of water to go under the bridge before it.
“We’re keen but also keeping in mind that you have to take it one training session at a time,” he said.
“It’s six weeks away and it’ll come very very quickly, but at the end of the day, six weeks to me means 12 training sessions, six more games.
“We need to make sure when we get to the 24th of March, we need to be ready to go, we’ve got our squad set, we’ve got players in a good physical condition and a good head space to be able to tackle it.”
Harper Sercombe
