The City West Falcons are confident they will again be in the mix again in the Victorian Netball League.
Coming off the championship title, the Falcons have managed to keep their core group together for another tilt.
Falcons coach Marg Lind things had been going well in the off season.
“We’re in match play at the moment,” she said.
“We’re getting some games into the legs right now. The championship side is pretty consistent.
“We’re confident in them, but we’ll see what they do. It’s hard to come back after winning a championship. It can be a little bit of a grind.”
The defensive end is where the Falcons have seen the changes in the off season.
Sarah Szczykulski has headed to Boroondara Express, while Mel Oloamanu will miss the season after doing her ACL.
Sienna Allan, who has been a training partner for the Collingwood Magpies in Super Netball, joins the Falcons defence.
Lind said Allan had provided some fresh ideas
“She comes from North East Blaze,” she said. “She’s had a couple of years ruined with injury.
“She’s got a conditioning team around her and she’s looking really good.”
Lind said they could have a combination of players playing that third defender role.
Sophie Hanrahan, who won the competition division 1 most valuable player last season, young rising start Charli Nicol and Achel Yout have been rolling through the defensive end through the pre-season.
Lind said Hanrahan brings a bit more experience than the other two, with them aware that Nicol needs consistent game time to help her development.
The Falcons midcourt has also received a boost with Maggie Lind back with the side full time. The two-time league most valuable player, only played games last season in between her Super Netball commitments.
Lind said they had a bit more depth this season and they would possibly look to give some younger players more exposure in the past.
Chelsea Imanisani, who played with Aerials championship side, is starting the season in the division 1 side.
While Lind is confident about the championship side, she said the division 1 and under-19 sides were unknown quantities.
“The division 1 is really young and quite new,” she said. “They have experience at both ends with Jini [Tharjini Sivalingam] and Peta Fay.
“The under-19s are young as well. We had to push some of last year’s side up.
“How they go will depend on how the handle the competition.”
The Falcons start their season on March 19 against the Geelong Cougars.
Tara Murray
