HOPPERS Crossing worked hard over summer in a bid to become one of the premier contested ball sides in the Western Region Football League division 1.
The Warriors put that into sharp focus on Saturday in a season-opening 41-point road win over North Footscray at Hansen Reserve.
Warriors captain Brad Murphy told the Weekly the fierce pre-season preparations stood his side in good stead last weekend with first-round fixtures invariably physical, scrappy, not-for-the-faint-hearted affairs.
“I spoke to the playing group before the game about round 1, what it can throw up and generally you see tight, in close, crash and bash contests because of the eagerness of the players.
“I knew the ball was going to be on the ground a lot, I knew there was going to be a lot of pressure and defensive stuff and one-on-one contests, and true to that it was exactly like that in the first half especially.
“We matched their intensity, we matched their hardness early and went on with it from there.”
The Warriors found it hard to shrug off the Devils for the best part of three quarters.
The under-strength Devils simply ran out of puff in the last quarter as the Warriors finally broke their stern resistance.
The first-up victory gives the Warriors a solid footing for their next mission against one of the flag contenders, Altona Vikings.
“It was a good start,” Murphy said.
“We obviously got what we went there to do and that was to get the four points.
“We put that in the bank now and hopefully it’s onwards and upwards from there.
“There’s still some areas we can improve … we’re going to have to lift a lot to beat Altona.”
There was huge interest in how the Warriors’ new recruits would mesh.
Terry Knight, a high-marking and sharp-shooting forward, endeared himself to the Warriors fans from the get go with eight goals in a stunning performance. “He’s not the tallest of full forwards but he’s got a presence, he leads well and he’s pretty strong overhead,” Murphy said.
“He’s got a nice kicking action on him.”
Daniel Riosa, Aaron Ramsay and Kade Carey also turned out for the Warriors for the first time.
Riosa, who crossed from Werribee Districts, thrived with his new team as the dominant big man on the ground, rotating between ruck and forward.
Ramsay, the most decorated of the new arrivals as a one-time winner of the RS Reynolds Medal for best and fairest in the Essendon District Football League, was underdone, having spent the preseason recovering from injuries. Carey, the nephew of former AFL superstar Wayne Carey, was a workhorse who presented a target all day but was limited in his effectiveness due to a shortage of service and a close checking opponent.
“One thing we need to work on is our disposal to Kade,” Murphy said.
“He led really well but we sort of hurt him a little bit with our disposal going inside 50.”
Warriors midfielder Aaron Williams was best afield, with his penetrating left boot a feature.
The Warriors get a chance to show their wares against a highly touted Vikings outfit in their first game at Hogans Road Reserve for 2012.
