By Alesha Capone
With more than 50 players turning up to each Point Cook Centrals training session ahead of the 2022 season launch in March, it is full steam ahead for the club.
Senior men’s coach Dean Chambers said: “We’ve had 74 guys train with us this year, we average about 55 per night – that’s unheard of, in this area.”
Chambers said that at some other clubs, about 20 to 25 players attended most training sessions.
The 2022 season will be officially launched on March 25, with three practice matches for the Point Cook Centrals that month including against Colac and the Western Rams in Rockbank.
During the 2021 season, which ended prematurely due to COVID-19, Point Cook Centrals finished near the bottom of the ladder.
Chambers said rather than viewing this as a challenge for 2022, the club instead saw it as a “a real opportunity” to improve, which has included the appointment of a new coaching panel.
“Obviously my appointment as a senior coach this year, with my background in state league football, they and I wanted to bring my professional skills here,” Chambers said.
“In training, with the commitment and buy-in we’ve seen from the training group, that’s been great.
“The young recruits have helped to motivate the older, regular players.
“They are a driven bunch of players, they want to improve on this year and the finals is a goal for more clubs at this time of year.”
Chambers said the club was keen to foster community values among its players this year, including as an all-inclusive club.
“The crux of it all is really the cultural shift towards empowering the community and our involvement with the community,” he said.
One of the new Point Cook Centrals players for 2022 is Jordan Bennett, who has previously played in state league competitions for the Western Jets in TAC Cup and Port Melbourne in the VF, plus Spotswood in the WRFL.
During Bennett’s 2015 VFL season, a knee injury forced him to spend the second half of the year playing in the AFL Victoria Development League.
Bennett said he had not played much football since about 2017, due to work commitments.
He said that he initially started 2022’s pre-season training with the Point Cook Centrals to get some exercise and see his mates.
“It’s actually a funny story, my friend Mitchell Palma who played for Hoppers Crossing, he sucked me in to come and play, he said: ‘Come down for a run, it will be good’,” Bennett said.
“During the pre-season, I had no intention of playing for three or four weeks, I was there for fun, fitness and to see my friends.
“Then before Christmas I turned up and they (Point Cook Centrals) had a contract ready for me and I thought: ‘Why not?’
“The boys and the coach have really welcomed me.
“My love of the game made we want to come back.”
Bennett said he was returning to football with “a fresh mind”.
“I’m going to go in and play my role, do whatever I can for the club and play my best,” he said.
“I feel lucky to be at Point Cook, I do see a lot of potential in the culture there, they are heading in the right direction there are good people around, good staff and good players.”
