Dragons gear up for critical match
BELL Park coach Jackie Riddle is bracing for another tough clash with Colac on Saturday when the Dragons travel to Central Reserve.
The two sides went 1-1 last year, but the margins of three and four goals highlight just how evenly they match each other.
Colac is fifth on the ladder with three wins from five games, although its two losses have been against Newtown and South Barwon, so its form has been strong.
The Dragons have won two matches but have been competitive all season, and Riddle knows with so much riding on the result that this week’s contest will be a typical eight-point game.
“It’s definitely a significant game for us,” Riddle said.
“We have had a few games where we have seen the lead get away from us, so we know it’s a timely match that we need to win.
“The games that we’ve lost our conversion rates have been low and we’ve made a lot of unforced errors, and on the weekend the four Cougars girls we have in our A-grade side had played on Wednesday and Friday leading into Saturday.
“So we have to manage the playing load of a small playing group.”
One of those players is star centre Kaitlyn Sheringham, who has been in stellar form with both the Cougars in the VNL and with Bell Park.
Riddle said Sheringham had been vital to the Dragons in the early part of the year and would continue to play her role despite the midweek fixtures at state level.
“With Katie I don’t think she’d play any different, she is just consistent every week,” Riddle said.
“She gives 100 per cent whether she is tired or not, so she is definitely one of the key factors in our side.
“We’ll go in with our full playing list this week.”