HERE WE COME
BELL Park co-coach Luke Rayner hopes a long debrief behind closed doors will unlock vast improvement in his side.
The Dragons went straight into a 30-minute review on Saturday night after beating South Barwon with little fanfare or conviction at Hamlyn Park.
The home side was never seriously challenged but was made to earn the win after the Swans kicked a couple of late goals in the 11.14 (80) to 10.5 (65) result.
“We just had an in-depth group discussion about how we’re going and what we’re doing well and what we need to do to improve,” Rayner said. “Because we’re still very much in the infancy about how we want to play and today was another example of that.
“There’s times where we’re making really good decisions but on a day like today there’s a lot of times where we’re making the wrong decisions, too.
“And that becomes the beauty of the challenge for the playing group and the coaching group: how quickly can we get on the same page collectively? There’s no time frame on that . . . but the room to improve is our biggest upside.
“The good thing about this playing group is their willingness and their want to do it and I know they’ll get there. I know their intentions are right.”
Spearhead Jarrod Garth made the most of his limited opportunities with four goals and Kristian Bucovaz did an admirable job for three quarters as an undersized ruckman in the absence of Zane Vail. Recruit Todd Stevenson added another strong game to his impressive start at the Dragons, and Cameron Green and Chris Lynch were particularly busy.
“It was just one of those days where I don’t think a lot went right in terms of how we wanted to play,” Rayner said.
“But in saying that I think South Barwon did a good job in probably containing the way we wanted to play and also hanging around and hanging in there, which is a good credit to them.”
The Swans refused to give up and despite the Dragons kicking well clear in the third quarter, came again in the final quarter.
Bell Park will regain Jackson Sheringham and Mitch Elford next week and the prospects are looking good for Vail, who has been missing with a broken hand.
Ben Johnson is also in the mix after being a late withdrawal.