YOU can look at Wauchope’s predicament ahead of the 2018 Football Mid North Coast Premier League season one of two ways.
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Last season’s new boys finished at the foot of the ladder, narrowly pipped by Camden Haven by eight goals on goal difference.
It suggests the only way is up.
When digging a little deeper, the scenario facing them in their second year is arguably a more challenging one than what they faced 12 months ago.
Players have moved on and coach Terry Burn may have to take a step back halfway through the season to complete a law degree.
Throw in a changing of the committee at the top of the club and suddenly everything becomes far more clouded.
Only half a dozen regulars remain from last year’s first grade squad and of those, Blake Avery could be out for the season with a knee injury suffered last week.
You’d have to say it’s a good thing to have that turnover because you’re managing to replace them.
- Wauchope coach Terry Burn
Dane Seymour, Josh Everingham, Alex Turnbull, Brad Ostler and Callum Johnson are the only ones who are left.
Burn, however, prefers to look at it as encouraging that they have been able to drag across former Port FC players in Dakota Stafford, Lance Dekker and Matt Ramm.
“You’d have to say it’s a good thing to have that turnover because you’re managing to replace them,” he said.
“It’s good that the club is attracting players and can pull from Port because we don’t have the player base in Wauchope at the moment.”
The coach admitted it would be “interesting to see how they gel” after the 50 per cent turnover from the previous year.
“This is only our second year back in the competition,” he said.
A further challenge for the club will be the Premier League’s new promotion-relegation format and avoiding a repeat of last year.
“It will be tough because anyone who drops out this year will be out for a couple of years,” Burn said.
The coach said rumours other clubs around the competition were suffering from similar problems on the field as his own team gave them cause for optimism.
It will be tough because anyone who drops out this year will be out for a couple of years.
- Terry Burn
Only Wallis Lake and Port United appear to have had a smooth off-season and positive trial form.
“We have our own issues we need to focus on,” Burn said.
“We need to build our club and work on developing our players through the junior ranks.”
Burn was encouraged by the numbers of players that had been at training.
“We’ve got more numbers than we need for two teams, but are only a couple short of having a third grade team,” he said.
“That would be a bonus for us to give some of our 14 and 15-year-old’s a run.”
