FOOTBALL
By Luke West
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MITIAMO will be aiming to pick up from where it left off this year following a dominant 2021 Loddon Valley league season that was frustratingly cut short.
The Superoos were unbeaten last year, but didn't get the opportunity to vie for the premiership after the season was called off before finals due to COVID community sport restrictions.
Instead, the Superoos go into the history books as the 2021 "minor premiers".
Last year's unbeaten 12-0 record comes on the back of the Superoos having won the 2019 premiership, with the team having gone 28-3 over the league's past two seasons (there was no competition in 2020).
Mitiamo has had a coaching change, with Marcus McKern stepping up from assistant to take on the senior role after the departures of previous co-coaches Andy Grant and Tyrone Downie.
The Superoos have turned over 10 players from last year's unbeaten team, including key defender Max Simpson, who finished No.1 in the Addy's Loddon Valley player rankings and was an integral part of a Mitiamo backline that conceded just 40 points per game in 2021.
Also gone from last year are gun forward Downie, who has hung up the boots, Lachlan Woodward, Ben Bacon, Dylan Mutu, Brent Downie, Tim Brooks, Ash Benbow, Matt Wiegard and Braydan Riddell.
The Downie brothers, Simpson, Brooks, Bacon, Benbow and Woodward are all 2019 premiership players for the Superoos.
The departures of the Downie brothers and Brooks leaves the Superoos without three of their top five goalkickers from last year, with the trio having combined for 92 majors in 2021.
Joining the Superoos are five recruits, including the talented Jay Reynolds from Koondrook-Barham, who will provide a key forward/midfield option.
"Jay is a real X-factor type of player who can turn a game on its head in 20 minutes," McKern said.
"He has played some VFL at Frankston and in the QAFL up in Queensland, so he has a strong background."
The Superoos have also added the dashing Troy Rogers (half-back/wing) from Koondrook-Barham, Harry McCormick (small forward) who has played some senior football with Golden Square, former Mitiamo player James Drake (defender) and 197cm Declan Bevan.
Plus gun midfielder Carl Nicholson, who has a SANFL background, will be just like a new recruit after suffering a season-ending knee injury in his first game last year.
The Superoos have retained their contingent of Queensland-based players of ruckman Michael I'Anson, star on-baller Lee Dale and Nicholson, while Drake and Rogers will also fly-in.
Dale, Doug Thomas, veteran Lucas Matthews, Nicholson and assistant coach Ross Turner will provide the midfield engine room for the Superoos.
"Our midfield is definitely going to be our strong suit," McKern said.
"We know what our one wood is and that's based around the contested ball, so we'll just keep on doing what we've been doing well over the past few years.
We know what our one wood is and that's based around the contested ball, so we'll just keep on doing what we've been doing well over the past few years
- Marcus McKern
"We've obviously lost some defenders with Max Simpson, Lachlan Woodward and Matt Wiegard gone, so we'll have to move the magnets around a bit, but Carl Nicholson can swing back, Jack Vinnicombe finished last year really well and James Drake is a tall who will play down there.
"We've still got Luke Lougoon down there, we can always push Jarryd Wiegard back into defence and we've got a couple of big ruckmen in Michael I'Anson and Nathan Twigg who can swing through there, so defensively we still should structure up well."
The Superoos are at home to Bears Lagoon-Serpentine in round one.
NETBALL
By Kieran Iles
Coach: Laura Hicks.
Placing when season ended last year: First.
Arrivals: Carly Scholes.
Departures: Lucy Morcom, Gabe Marlow, Britt Fitzpatrick.
First game: v Bears Lagoon-Serpentine (April 2).
It will be a season of change for perennial powerhouse Mitiamo.
The Superoos will be led by a new coach in four-time league medallist Laura Hicks and will be without three players from the A-grade team which finished as minor premiers last season and lost just one game.
Gone are star goal shooter Lucy Morcom, fellow 2019 premiership player Gabe Marlow, who is taking a break from netball, and Britt Fitzpatrick, who will line up with HDFNL team White Hills in 2022.
The Superoos will largely replace from within their own ranks, with the exception at goal shooter, where former Bridgewater player Carly Scholes will join Hicks in the goal circle.
Scholes joins the Superoos after a stellar season with Maryborough Rovers in the Maryborough Castlemaine District Football Netball League and will be a more than handy replacement for premiership star Morcom.
"Lucy's a big loss, she's obviously a gun, but we have picked Carly up, so that's handy and a relief," said Hicks of the club newcomer.
"She'll come straight into goals and she is a more than handy recruit. It's not every day you can find an A-grade goaler you can just slot in and know can do the job.
"We know Carly and we know what she is like and we know she is a very accurate shooter. It's very nice to be able to slot her straight in."
The Superoos, who won the last grand final contested in 2019 and have appeared in three of the last four premiership deciders with the exception of 2018, will still boast plenty of firepower in Hicks and midcourters Amelia Ludeman, who was the team's second highest Helen Ward Medal votegetter, and Sarah Ludeman
The defence remains solid with Abbey Battersby and Jess Pay back from last year's line-up, which conceded few big scores.
While there have been some changes in personnel, most opposing coaches have unsurprisingly picked Mitiamo as still the team to beat.
Hicks, who is coaching a team at any level for the first time, is confident the Superoos can retain their edge despite the loss of some personnel.
"There's still plenty of familiarity among the squad," she said.
"I'm not one to concern myself too much with what other clubs are doing and until you do know it's hard to know where you sit against them, but we always hope that we are up there."
The early season draw has been reasonably kind to Mitiamo.
The Superoos don't play one of last year's top five teams until round three when they take on Marong, with a clash against Calivil United, the only team to beat them last season, in round four.
SEASON FIXTURE:
ROUND 1 - April 2
v Bears Lagoon-Serpentine (h)
ROUND 2 - April 9
v Newbridge (a)
ROUND 3 - April 23
v Marong (h)
ROUND 4 - April 30
v Calivil United (a)
ROUND 5 - May 7
v Inglewood (a)
ROUND 6 - May 14
v Pyramid Hill (h)
ROUND 7 - May 21
v Maiden Gully YCW (a)
ROUND 8 - May 28
Bye
ROUND 9 - June 4
v Bridgewater (h)
ROUND 10 - June 18
v Bears Lagoon-Serpentine (a)
ROUND 11 - June 25
v Newbridge (h)
ROUND 12 - July 2
v Marong (a)
ROUND 13 - July 9
v Calivil United (h)
ROUND 14 - July 16
v Inglewood (h)
ROUND 15 - July 23
v Pyramid Hill (a)
ROUND 16 - July 30
v Maiden Gully YCW (h)
ROUND 17 - August 6
Bye
ROUND 18 - August 13
v Bridgewater (a)
2022 SEASON PREVIEWS:
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