Tigers pounce on signatures for champion pair
THERE was no hesitation for Colac to sign up two of “the greats of our club” as veterans Lochie Veale and Kane Leersen commit to playing on.
A simple change of direction brought Leersen down in July, leaving him with a torn ACL and ending his season.
The champion was always keen to play on and has had surgery, and now is only weeks away from starting to run again.
“That has always been his plan – to come back and try and have another crack at it,” Colac coach Rowan McSparron said.
“He has had surgery, he is just in the recovery phase now. Maybe in the next 3-4 weeks he can start running again and get slowly back into some form of training.”
One of the great ruckmen in the GFL’s recent history, Veale has been limited to five games this year as the club nursed him towards September but he was named in the best on four occasions.
“He is Benjamin Button, he just keeps getting better with age,” McSparron said. “He looks after himself really well and still wants to keep playing so we will keep him as long as he wants to play.
“These are greats of our club. Not just greats of this era but all time at our football club.
“We want to hang on to these boys as long as we can and let them pass their knowledge and experience back on to the next generation of players coming through.”
McSparron said he expected the majority of players to return next season, with most key players resigned already.
The Tigers returned to training over the weekend as Covid restrictions eased, in the hope they would play again this year.
Having finished second on the GFL ladder, Colac would play St Mary’s if the season wound down to a stand-alone grand final.
“(The players) can still see a bit of light at the end of the tunnel and while that is there we will keep pushing forward,” McSparron said.