Mystery as round resumes
The mystery box that is Wimmera football league will continue to reveal its 2021 secrets when round-one action continues this weekend.
While Stawell and Ararat provided some idea of what their seasons might hold in a regional football icebreaker on Good Friday, questions remain about the preparations of all other combatants.
Scuttlebutt that has followed the league since news filtered through that the competition would resume this year is that Minyip-murtoa might again be the team to beat.
But how would anyone really know? It has been a year since many players have kicked a ball in anger and 12 months can be a long time, especially in the development of young talent.
And it might well be the next generation that, sheltered under the wings of its more experienced team-mates, starts to emerge as the most profound of stories.
Minyip-murtoa, for the record, starts its season against Warrack Eagles on Saturday, an ‘eternity’ after the Burras claimed a long-awaited premiership in 2019.
At that stage, without knowing what was to come with COVID-19 in 2020, it appeared Minyip-murtoa was primed for a new stretch of dominance.
The Burras will want to make sure the speculation becomes a reality.
Warrack Eagles, on the other hand, will have few problems forgetting senior results for 2019.
The Eagles finished second bottom, although the team was far from humbled, scoring four wins for the year. The teams and everyone else will know more after Saturday’s action at Minyip. Horsham’s fortunes of course will also attract plenty of interest after the Demons play Nhill at Horsham City Oval.
The Demons are historically the league’s most successful outfit, although in 2019 they stumbled, finishing sixth and missing a place in the finals.
Nhill, which competes against a tyranny of distance as well as opposition clubs, has also attracted a large question mark.
Where do the Tigers, who have often drawn on players from South Australia in the past, sit after a year off?
Then there is perhaps the most fascinating game this weekend – at Coughlin Park in Horsham where Horsham Saints take on Dimboola.
Dimboola, similar to Minyip-murtoa, has also been the subject of considerable chatter regarding player movements, while Horsham Saints have also been busy shoring up their ranks.
Netball
How Minyip-murtoa shapes up this season will also generate plenty of attention in Wimmera netball.
A Grade netballers also clinched the 2019 flag, beating Horsham in a thriller, and again it is likely that emerging young players will heavily influence results this year.
The clash between the Burras and Warrack Eagles should qualify as match of the round, but a contest between Horsham Saints and Dimboola should also be close.
Horsham is a perennial force and will fully test Nhill’s resolve. Southern Mallee Giants will be keen observers of all that happens on both the football fields and netball courts as it sits out with a firstround bye.