When you've lost your past two games by more than 200 points, you could understand if Coby Perry was frustrated with his footy life.
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Throw into the mix a wrist injury that will keep him sidelined for at least another month and Perry has every reason to be tearing his hair out.
It says a lot about the Maryborough senior coach that his attitude remains upbeat and positive.
The silver lining to the Magpies' cloud is youth.
Perry can see a bright future for the club if they put in the hard yards now.
Maryborough is one of few clubs in the region that has two players in the current Bendigo Pioneers team - midfielder Lachlan Hurse and key forward Taj Bond.
The Pies' under-18s are more than competitive in the BFNL where they sit in fourth place.
READ MORE: Double injury blow for BFNL flag contender
"It's a great sign for the club that we have these talented kids coming through,'' Perry said.
"We have two players in the current team and we have Tommy Myers, who trains with the Pioneers.
"Oscar Tatchell will make his senior debut for the club on Saturday against South Bendigo.
"He's a 17-year-old kid with athleticism and raw talent. He has a lot to offer going forward.
"He trains hard and you could tell from the first day he started training with the club that he had something different about him."
Injuries have hurt the Pies the past two games, but they have a stronger squad on the park for Saturday's home game against South Bendigo.
"Last week we had 15 players unavailable across the seniors and reserves, which makes it hard,'' Perry said.
"This week we're in much better shape where we should have 22 players for both teams.
"We're looking forward to being more competitive against South Bendigo.
"We're back at home and it's the club's ball on Saturday night, so it should be a good day and night for the club."
After two-straight losses, South Bendigo needs to get back to winning form.
Despite losses to Sandhurst and Strathfieldsaye the past two weeks, the Bloods remain well-placed to challenge for the top three.
They will start favourite in their next three games - Maryborough (away), Gisborne (home) and Castlemaine (away) - and should go into the halfway mark of the season with a 6-3 record.
In other BFNL round seven games, Sandhurst puts its undefeated status on the line against reigning premier Gisborne at Gardiner Reserve, Strathfieldsaye faces a danger game at home against Kangaroo Flat, Golden Square should be too good for Castlemaine at Camp Reserve and Eaglehawk is on the rebound from defeat when it hosts Kyneton.
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