10 DAYS TO GO | EFL Media will be previewing each club ahead of the 2018 season with the #InFocus2018 series, all thanks to Yarra Valley Water & Choose Tap.
By: Peter Baird
Twitter: @frostybaird
Entering his third season at the helm of the Surrey Park Football Club, senior coach Scott Hamill is under no illusion about what is expected of his playing group in 2018.
“Every team at this time of year will roll out the cliché that they hope to play finals football,” Hamill said.
“For us though it’s not just a hope but an expectation that needs to be delivered upon.
“This football club has seen gradual and steady improvements since I arrived here and now it’s time to show the competition that we are a genuine contender.”
Surrey Park senior coach Scott Hamill. PICTURE: Stuart Milligan
In his two previous seasons as senior coach, Hamill has led the Panthers to 10 wins in 2016 and eight wins and a draw last season – a record not matched since Surrey Park topped the Division 4 ladder and last played senior finals in 2006.
“It’s certainly been a long time between drinks for the club, not having played senior finals for 12 years, but I believe that we are ready to take that next step and nothing short of that will be satisfactory this season”, Hamill said.
Looking at where the improvement will come from in 2018 to propel the Panthers into top 4 contention, Hamill believes he already has the necessary tools at his disposal.
“The key this season will be consistency – we showed last year that our best football is good enough to match it with anyone in the competition,” he said.
“We beat grand finalist, Forest Hill as well as Whitehorse who made the prelim in the second half the year and only lost one of our last six games – to eventual premier Donvale by three goals.
“If we can address the slow start we had last year and build that type of momentum again, there is no reason why we won’t be sitting in contention at the business end of the year.”
Hamill issued a warning to rest of his Division 4 rivals
“We will be coming out firing and ready to go in round 1,” he said.
“Forest Hill will probably be smarting after a second successive grand final defeat but you can rest assured that my boys won’t be taking a backward step.
“We haven’t rolled out clichéd hashtags or extended player payments to the upper limits of the cap to become competitive.
“That’s not the way we operate as a football club and firmly believe that our actions speak louder than our words or budget.
‘”We have gone out and recruited smartly to address areas where we can get better and a lot of development will be organic with fantastic young kids coming through.”
Those young players Hamill spoke of formed part of the Surrey Park under-19s team who finished third in the combined Division 3/4 under-19s competition last year.
It made it all the way through to a grand final going down in the end to Donvale by 12 points.
“There’s 13 boys from that side who make the transition to senior football in 2018 and probably eight or nine ready-made senior players there,” Hamill said.
“On the back of our reserves playing finals for the first time in over a decade last year, there is going to be a real competition for places within the senior side.
“That is something that Surrey Park hasn’t seen for a long time and will put pressure from within on everyone to perform week in, week out.”
Surrey Park will have to deal with the retirement of their leading goal kicker and 2017 Division 4 Team of the Year representative Graeme Johns.
The club has remodelled its forward structure for 2018 with full forward Chris Smith, centre half forward Callum Vail both from Chirnside Park, as well as a tall utility forward in Josh Brownwell from A-grade VAFA club , Old Trinity donning the black and white prison bars this season.
“(Chris) Smith will be fantastic for us this year,” Hamill said.
“He broke his finger and didn’t play much last year at Chrinside but the year before kicked 60-odd goals in Division 3.
“While ‘Johnsy’ (Graeme Johns) kicked 61 goals for us last year we were pretty predictable at times and this year we have a much greater range of avenues towards goal.”
The Panthers have also looked to provide extra support in their midfield to 2017 Perc James medal runner-up Kane Henden.
2017 Perc James medal runner-up Kane Henden. PICTURE: Surrey Park FC Facebook page.
“Sugar (Henden) had a great year last year along with guys like Bede Briscomb and Ryan Kennedy and are ready to take their games to the next level,” Hamill said.
“We’ve gone out and picked up a six-foot-six ruckman, Jesse Lehmann from Chirnside Park and Nick Snibson from Division 1 side Blackburn.
“Snibson is that in and under type and will compliment what we have there already nicely and when you add Matt Goodings who returns to the club from Knox, we’re looking pretty good.”
There is certainly an air of excitement and expectation that surrounds Surrey Park as it heads into 2018. You get the feeling that the window of success may just be opening for the Panthers after years of hard work to get back into a position to launch an assault on the competition.
Surrey Park will kick off its season when it travels to play Forest Hill away on April 7.