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Sport

24 August, 2023

Maryborough juniors ready to attack Bendigo finals

Maryborough’s juniors will be starting their finals campaign in the Bendigo Junior Football League (BJFL) this weekend, with the under 16s taking centre stage. Both Maryborough’s under 16s and under 14s have qualified for the finals, with the...

By Michael Thompson

Maryborough juniors ready to attack Bendigo finals - feature photo

Maryborough’s juniors will be starting their finals campaign in the Bendigo Junior Football League (BJFL) this weekend, with the under 16s taking centre stage.

Both Maryborough’s under 16s and under 14s have qualified for the finals, with the under 14s starting their campaign next week when they play South Bendigo in a showdown between first and second.

In the meantime, Maryborough’s under 16s, led by Cam Skinner, will be playing off in their first final this Sunday when they travel to Wade Street Recreation Reserve to play Golden Square.

Deciding to test themselves in the top division of the BJFL under 16s competition, the Magpies finished an impressive third, despite many players still eligible to play another season in the competition in 2024.

That, says Skinner, bodes well for the group going forward.

“I’m pretty proud of the boys. It’s a big effort to finish in the top three, with some high-quality teams that get around in Bendigo,” he said.

“I think a lot of the boys were aiming for division one early on, but we’ve shown that we’re good enough to match it with most teams, although the top two are head and shoulders above everyone else.

“It’s been a good experience playing in the top level.”

While top two teams Sandhurst and Golden Square have been the two dominant forces of the competition this season, Skinner believes finals can be a different ball game when the pressure is on, with Maryborough adopting a nothing-to-lose attitude.

“Finals is a completely different game. If you start well, anything can happen,” he said.

“We played Golden Square twice, the first time around, they beat us by around 90, and then last Sunday, we lost by around 60. The second half of Sunday’s game, we held them to three goals, and we kicked two, so we showed we can match it with them for a half of footy.

“Hopefully we can take it into this week’s game.”

Skinner says there are many players who are destined to potentially go into higher-level football, with four players still in the frame to potentially represent the Bendigo Pioneers’ under 16 team in 2024.

“A few of our bottom agers have gone quite well this year, such as Logan Howell, Campbell Wood, Archie Chadwick and Zac Cicchini,” he said.

“They’re all still in the selection process for the V-Line Cup, which is basically the last 50 players to potentially play for the Pioneers in under 16s next year, which should be decided this week or next.

“They’ve had good seasons and to have high quality players always helps.

“Others who have played well for us have included Cooper Mark, who came across from Carisbrook last year and had a super year as well.

“Mitch Stork has had a good year and so has Jasper Trickey, who is really improving. It’s just good to see.”

Skinner says the form of the group bodes well for 2024.

“If all of them hang around, 10 players will go up to under 18s next year, but 12 will still stay down, it’s really exciting,” he said.

“There are some really good players that will also come up, so we’ll have a really good base before we even start trying to recruit for next year.

“It’s looking good, and hopefully others outside the league who want to push themselves and test themselves considers it.”

While Skinner prepares for the under 16s’ first final this week, under 14s coach Marc Cassidy will be waiting another week, but is still excited about the challenge of playing against South Bendigo in their first final, particularly given how close their two encounters have been this year.

“We’ve had a pretty good year. We have the week off to start with, but we will start next Sunday against South Bendigo. We’ve had two good games against them, winning by less than a goal the first time, and losing by less than a goal the second time. We know they are thereabouts,” he said.

Like the under 16s, Maryborough’s under 14s are made up of talented bottom-aged players who will again be eligible to play in the grade in 2024, but the performance of the top-aged players means they are well set up going forward, according to Cassidy.

“With the under 14s, we only have about five or six top-agers, which makes it difficult against the top teams, but in their first year in the group, they have performed really well, led by those top agers, which is why we have finished as high as we have on the ladder,” he said.

Cassidy paid tribute to Skinner’s work with the under 16s, while also keeping an eye on the future, and what the group can achieve.

“The under 16s have had a fantastic season. If they can manage to finish third, it’s an unbelievable result, and I think they can be even better next season, as well as the under 14s with the amount of top-aged players,” he said.

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