Demons hit the spurs
There is a big question in Wimmera league that might have slipped under the radar as the region counts down to another big year of football.
Was disappointment of 2019 the simple tonic that perennial powerhouse Horsham needed to rekindle its claim as competition benchmark?
Horsham, its trophy room overflowing with premiership cups after years of domination, was a surprise absentee from finals action last year, having finished sixth with an unflattering 6-10 win-loss record.
The result would have no doubt burnt at the core of a Horsham faithful so used to their team pushing deeply into finals every year.
It is certainly an aspect of a pre-season build-up far from lost on joint Demons coach Jordyn Burke.
“There is no doubt it has reignited the hunger,” Burke said.
“It sticks in the guts a bit and is not where we want to be as a footy club.
“When you look back it’s easy in hindsight, but when you’re amongst it at the time it’s a bitter feeling.
“We all had an impact on where it all finished up and we all now have a responsibility to change it. That comes from working hard, getting confidence back and getting better.
“To be brutally honest it is about saying it as it is and getting on with it.”
Burke, a non-playing leader in a coaching partnership with playing Rhona Conboy, said new players pushing into the list were bringing natural confidence to the group.
“We need to build that confidence up and the boys have bounced back really well. They have put in a good body of work during the pre-season,” he said.
“With the standards we have at the club, last year was disappointing, but we have to quickly move on from that.
“Deek Roberts and Tim Wade put a lot into young players and debutants last season and that’s going to have a flow-on effect. That’s going to be a great positive coming into this year.
“With our young list, it’s a matter of just closing a gap between best and worst. Sure, inconsistencies are going to be there, but making sure we still get wins on the board while developing these young fellows is going to be important.”
A major bonus for Horsham is the tall timber the club will have at its disposal, a rare luxury likely to test most opposition teams.
A following division will include Rhys Barber, Billy Carberry and returning Sid Hernon and a raw and athletic Dyson Parish out of under-17s.
Jeremy Hartigan will also add strength in his return from Echuca United, while Conboy, back from injury and a fit Garret Liston will also provide considerable following or key-position support.
“We probably haven’t had such a ruck division for about 15 years,” Burke said.
“Our midfield will be young and we’ll need some old heads in there and we have to take advantage and train to win ruck duels.”
Burke added that a primary directive this year would be finding ways of kicking winning scores as the team went through a natural annual adjustment.
“We had the nuts and bolts of what was required last year, but while competing really well it was evident we needed to find more ways of kicking a score,” he said.
“When you lose a Ryan Kemp and a Josh Mibus and then have injuries you’re looking at 80 goals a year and you can’t replace that straight away. We defend really well. Our back six has been the cornerstone for us and that will continue. But we also need to have a proactive offensive game.”
Horsham has been training solidly since before Christmas last year with a heavy concentration on running drills and contesting work.
Burke said an initial desire was to get to the halfway point of the season with more wins than losses.
“We can assess it further from there. We ultimately want to be in the best position possible to push for a finals double chance,” he said.
“Obviously the main aim is to play finals footy.”
The Demons will play Mundulla in a practice match at Mundulla on March 28 and have also planned two other pre-season games before a season opener against reigning premier Minyip-murtoa.
The club is training Tuesday and Thursday nights at Horsham City Oval and is also planning for major reunion celebrations in May.