BFNL 2023 season preview: Castlemaine

NEW Castlemaine coach Brendan Shepherd knows his side is still a long way off competing with the elite teams of the BFNL, but hopes the Magpies can begin to bridge the gap this year. Shepherd was a member of the last Castlemaine premiership side in 2000, but the club he returns to this year is one that has won just five of its past 79 games dating back to 2017. He is certainly pragmatic about where the club is at and knows there will be no quick fix on the field, but is hopeful of improving on last year's two wins - both against Maryborough - and being able to stay in games for longer against those sides in the top half of the ladder. And Shepherd will get the chance early in the season to see if his side can match it for longer with the top-end talent of the competition given in the first three rounds the Magpies play both of last year's grand finalists Gisborne and Strathfieldsaye. "We certainly want to be in a position to be able to push those top sides a lot more... where we've had those 150-180 point losses against the likes of Golden Square and Strathfieldsaye, we want to be pegging that back," said Shepherd, who has taken over as coach from Don Moran. "We know we're still a fair way off the mark of those clubs, but we want to start being more competitive against them and be able to come off the ground with our heads held high and not be embarrassed." New players to the Magpies this year include 2019 best and fairest winner Matt Filo, who has returned to Camp Reserve and will slot back into the engine room. The Magpies have also picked up David Wilson (midfielder) from Maldon, Tom Wilson (midfielder) from Marong, Daniel Lawson (mid/half-back), Jack Sutherland (utility) and Lloyd Butcher (ruckman). "Our starting midfield will be the likes of Matt Filo, Dave Wilson, John Watson, Riley Pedretti and Callum McConachy and we hope to have eight or nine blokes who can go through there," Shepherd said. "Obviously, the more players you can have going through the middle the better." Up forward the Magpies will look to young Ben Moran as well as Brad Keogh as key avenues to goal, while the backline will be led by veteran David Stephens and Liam Wilkinson, while Brodie Byrne is a player continuing to emerge for the Magpies. "And we've got Daniel Lawson and Jack Sutherland who will be able to play in defence as well," Shepherd said. "We hope to cement our back six fairly early in the season and not have to alter our structure too much." The Magpies' departure list is headed by star midfielder Tommy Horne (Morningside), who was equal third in last year's Michelsen Medal, while Jack Chester, Tom Cain, Declan Slingo and forward Zac Denahy, who has joined BFNL rival Gisborne, are also among the outs. Shepherd says the Magpies took plenty of encouraging signs out of their practice match against Hepburn on April 1 at Kyneton. "We played them in a six-quarter game and I know how professional they are as a club having previously played there for five years," Shepherd said. "We fielded our best 22 and they fielded their best 22 for the first three quarters and we were up by 27 points at that point and I think that should put us in good stead for when we come up against those sides like Maryborough and Kangaroo Flat that like us are in a similar position of building. "I felt that practice game against Hepburn was a really good stepping stone for the club and good for the mindset of our players." DISPOSALS John Watson 445 Tommy Horne 348 Declan Slingo 323 Riley Pedretti 290 Jackson Hood 244 William Moran 215 Jack Chester 199 Tom Cain 196 Brodie Byrne 189 Liam Wilkinson 182 MARKS Riley Pedretti 112 John Watson 105 Tommy Horne 87 Liam Wilkinson 86 Jackson Hood 76 David Stephens 68 Declan Slingo 61 Brodie Byrne 59 Brad Keogh 55 Bailey Henderson 53 CLEARANCES Tommy Horne 88 Declan Slingo 71 Tom Cain 52 William Moran 51 Jack Chester 34 Samuel Nettleton 32 Bailey Henderson 29 Brendan Josey 25 Callum McConachy 24 Riley Pedretti 14 TACKLES Declan Slingo 115 Tommy Horne 83 Callum McConachy 63 Samuel Nettleton 63 Nic Woodman 54 William Moran 49 Brendan Josey 47 Tom Cain 45 Tyson Hickey 39 Jack Chester 39 GOALS Brad Keogh 12 Zac Denahy 12 Tommy Horne 10 Brodie Byrne 9 Jack Chester 9 Bailey Henderson 9 Liam Wilkinson 8 Callum McConachy 7 William Moran 3 John Watson 2 Coaches: Fiona Fowler and Gary Cooke. Last year: Fourth (13-6-1). 2022 best and fairests: Jane O'Donohue and Fiona Fowler. Player gains: Montaya Sardi. Player losses: Georgie Rodger, Kelsie Rainbow. Promoted: Megan Wilson. Last A-grade premiership: Never won an A-grade flag. CASTLEMAINE will head into the 2023 season with high hopes following an exceptional first season back in A-grade last year following a hiatus. The Magpies won 13 of 20 games played and drew another on their way to a fourth-placed finish. They were unlucky not to finish even higher after being eliminated in a thrilling semi-final encounter against Gisborne in overtime. Among the many highlights of their season was a round 18 win over eventual premiers Sandhurst. The Magpies and Kangaroo Flat were the only two teams to score a win over the Dragons. Castlemaine looks well placed to build on last season's impressive performance, having lost only two players from last year's line-up, including Georgie Rodger (overseas), while adding former state junior representative Montaya Sardi and promoting young gun Megan Wilson to A-grade. Sardi and Wilson add to other exceptional young talent at the club, headlined by Caitlin Richardson and Emma Winfield. The Magpies will again boast plenty of experience too, with joint coach and joint best and fairest winner Fiona Fowler set to play a full season, and gun goal attack Mikaela Vaughan, goal shooter Jane O'Donohue, defender Tara Ford and classy midcourter Maddie Carter all recommitting. As was the case last year, joint coaches Gary Cooke and Fowler will certainly not be afraid to experiment with their line-up. "We had a year together last year and really started to develop line-ups and combinations and we see things as being similar this year," he said. "We want to test some line-ups as we go through the year and make sure we have a whole lot of options to throw out there on the court as there are some really good teams we come up against. "We want to make sure we're covered for any scenario, or if players get sick or injured, as it's a long season." The Magpies have warmed up for the season with practice matches against BFNL rival Strathfieldsaye and the Riddell league's Woodend Heskett and by playing plenty of intra-club games. They will play expected improvers Maryborough in round one before a showdown against last year's semi-final opponent Gisborne at Camp Reserve. Cooke is convinced the Magpies have the talent to push for another top-four finish. "We're ambitious to go higher, absolutely," he said. "We know what we've got player-wise, there's some absolute quality. "And after last year's experience, we know what we have to do and the effort we need to put in. "We'll go in focused and ready to hit the court running at the start of the season, but our goal is to be back in that top four and improve on what happened last year." Fowler and Cooke have identified success across all five grades as a focus for this season. "We don't want to go into this year having just our A-grade and A-reserve doing really well and not the other teams," Cooke said. "Obviously, we want to continue that success at the top, but we want to step it up in B-grade and B-reserve. "Hence, we've had new players come in across the grades and we've done a rejig with our teams, now that we've had a year under the belt. "Fi and I are feeling pretty good all round. It's all about continuing to rebuild the club and to keep the culture going." ROUND 1 - April 15 v Maryborough (a) ROUND 2 - April 22 v Gisborne (h) ROUND 3 - April 29 v Strathfieldsaye (h) ROUND 4 - May 6 v Eaglehawk (a) ROUND 5 - May 13 v Kangaroo Flat (h) ROUND 6 - May 27 v Kyneton (a) ROUND 7 - June 3 v Golden Square (h) ROUND 8 - June 10 v Sandhurst (a) ROUND 9 - June 17 v South Bendigo (h) ROUND 10 - June 24 v Maryborough (h) ROUND 11 - July 8 v Gisborne (a) ROUND 12 - July 15 v Strathfieldsaye (a) ROUND 13 - July 22 v Eaglehawk (h) ROUND 14 - July 29 v Kangaroo Flat (a) ROUND 15 - August 5 v Kyneton (h) ROUND 16 - August 12 v Golden Square (a) ROUND 17 - August 19 v Sandhurst (h) ROUND 18 - August 26 v South Bendigo (a) Eaglehawk Gisborne Golden Square Kangaroo Flat Maryborough South Bendigo Strathfieldsaye Elmore Colbinabbin Heathcote Huntly Leitchville-Gunbower Lockington-Bamawm United Mount Pleasant North Bendigo White Hills Bears Lagoon-Serpentine Bridgewater Calivil United Inglewood Maiden Gully YCW Marong Mitiamo Newbridge Pyramid Hill Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. 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