FIGHTING FIT

NORTH Hobart has the youngest squad in the Tasmanian State League. The Baby Demons won only one game last year so, in a quest to get bigger and stronger, they used the money they had raised for an end-of-season trip to buy new gym equipment. Strength coach and player Nathan McCulloch (right) guides Sam Caswell and Jonty Barwick through a session yesterday.

NORTH Hobart players are reaping the rewards of their decision to spend $6000 they raised last year on fitness instead of fun as the Tasmanian State League season draws near.

The players decided towards the end of last season to use the money they had raised from fundraisers such as fines and functions on equipment such as dumbbells, sleds, and kettlebells, instead of a players’ trip.

After picking up only one win last year, North Hobart coach Richard Robinson said the young playing group’s willingness to sacrifice for the club was heartening.

“They’re committed to the footy club, and they just want the footy club to get better, so I’m very proud that they’ve done that,” Robinson said. “These days, kids just want, want, want, but these guys are just giving stuff back to the club, and they want themselves to get better, and that leads to the club being better.”

The team still went on a trip, but funded it themselves.

Robinson said the players had reaped the benefits of the new equipment in pre-season.

“There would have been probably 50 PBs the other day when they had their gym sets done, so the majority of the boys would have probably put on three or four kilos, on average,” he said.

Robinson said he hoped his team can be competitive every week this year. North Hobart strength coach and player Nathan McCulloch said the playing group was noticeably stronger and faster during pre-season.

“It’s a pretty simple [decision] from a playing group perspective, obviously we had a lot of room for improvement and spending the money that we’d raised on an end-of-season trip isn’t really going to improve us as a group,” McCulloch said. “We made the conscious decision to spend the money we’d raised throughout the year on equipment.”

The club’s first TSL game is against Lauderdale at North Hobart Oval on Saturday week.