HEATHCOTE District coach Rick Coburn is banking on a blend of pace and youth being two of the key ingredients to toppling Central Murray in their inter-league battle.
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Heathcote District and Central Murray lock horns at the Queen Elizabeth Oval from 4.15pm on Saturday in the 17 v 18 match in the AFL Victoria Country Championships.
“Right from the start we’ve been very keen to have a fast side with a fair bit of youth in it, and we think we’ve got that,” Coburn said on Thursday.
“We would have liked a bit more height in the team, but we still believe we’ve got a dangerous enough forward line that will give Central Murray a few headaches.
“Obviously, Grant Weeks will give us a strong target inside 50; Danny Brewster can play a variety of roles and will be a difficult match-up; and Nicholas Grigg will give a good, hard contest across half-forward.
“But we’ve also got a range of smaller players in the forward line who will be a real handful.
“We’re happy with our back six and we think we’ve got a lot of options through the midfield with plenty of run and carry and guys with genuine leg speed.
“We’ve got a good mix of players who we believe will all play a role for the team, but most importantly, all want to represent the league.”
Eight of the nine clubs are represented in the team, which will be captained by Lockington-Bamawm United’s Matt Bongiovanni.
The Central Murray team features five players who have previously played in the Bendigo Football League - Leighton Dullard, Tyson Mihocek, Travis Mathieson, Troy Coates and Lucas Matthews, plus former Collingwood-listed Toby Thoolen.
HEATHCOTE DISTRICT v CENTRAL MURRAY
QUEEN ELIZABETH OVAL, BENDIGO, 4.15pm SATURDAY
HEATHCOTE DISTRICT
B: Matt McEvoy, Chris Black, Hoby Bussey
Hb: Darcy Richards, Matt Riordan, Jye Keath
C: Jackson McEwan, Ryan Semmel, Tim Lincoln
Hf: Braidey Dickens, Nicholas Grigg, Jeremy Mills
F: Harry Whittle, Grant Weeks, Danny Brewster
Foll: Lochlan Sirret, Hayden Wright, Matt Bongiovanni
Interchange: (from) Stacy Fiske, Pat O'Brien, James Harney, Joel Helman, Chris Gleeson, Matthew Filo
CENTRAL MURRAY
B: Josh Bray, Troy Davis, Leighton Dullard
Hb: Nyaburu Kelly, Tyson Mihocek, Tom Lamb
C: Corey Kelly, Mitch Bosward, Marty Kelly
Hf: Luke Cotchett, Travis Mathieson, Jay Reynolds
F: Toby Thoolen, Daniel Mowat, Troy Coates
Foll: Ryan O’Sullivan, Xavier Moloney, Ryan Gillingham
Interchange: Tim Ruffles, Lucas Matthews, Frankie Robinson, Aaron Cadd