18 DAYS – SOUTH BELGRAVE U17’S

2014 EFL Pre-Season Wiki | Tomorrow: Upper Ferntree Gully

SOUTH Belgrave has entered an Under 17’s side into the junior EFL competition over the past two seasons – and it will happen again in 2014.

Saints Under 17 coach Danny Blomeley speaks to Maddi Vantarakis as the team prepares for the season.

Maddi Vantarakis: After two seasons in the competition, has the club been pleased with the Under 17’s team’s results?

Danny Blomeley: It’s a challenge because we come from the Under 16’s in the Dandenong Ranges Junior Football League, so it’s been a bit of a challenge from a numbers perspective. In the main year though, we’re fairly happy with everything.

Do you feel this year’s Under 17’s side can be as competitive as last year’s side?

We’re actually hoping to be a little bit more competitive. We’ve recruited well and we’ve got some solid kids coming up from the Under 16’s that were successful in the competition last year.

What has the feeling been like around the side over the pre-season?

Good! We’ve combined with the Under 16’s to get the numbers together, purely so we could get into the larger drills. We’re as fit as we’ve ever been and we’ve done the hardest pre-season on record.

How short is the side in terms of numbers as we approach the start of the season?

We welcome all new players, but we’re going to be there or thereabouts. A few more numbers would definitely be welcome!

If any players are interested in playing for the South Belgrave Under 17’s side this season, what do they have to do?

They could just visit the website of the South Belgrave Football Club and click on the Under 17s link. It’s got all the contact details and training nights on there.

There’s a pretty good vibe around the club on the back of the seniors winning the Division 4 Premiership, so we’ve had a lot of people want to come down to the club this year and be a part of this successful period.