Southern Power will be gunning for back-to-back premierships when the Division One season kicks off this weekend.
After two successive Grand Final defeats to now-Premier Division premiers Manly-Warringah, Power President Lauren Hodgson recognises the challenge now is to maintain the winning momentum.
"With the changes to the structure of the Premier Division (addition of Balmain and Illawarra to Division One), we think the competition will be stronger and more competitive than ever before,"‖she said.
"We have seen some retirements within the club and some players have chosen to pursue other opportunities but we're confident with the squad we've been able to assemble, including the return of some favourite sons that we will again be a premiership contender this season and next."‖
Hodgson has extra reason to be excited for Round One.
"We are hosting the annual Southern Power Members day on Round 1 when our Division 1 and Division 3 teams play against Balmain at Lincoln Oval, Waratah Park. The Premiership Cup and match ball (signed by the team) will be on display and the flag will be raised prior to the commencement of the Division 1 game at 2pm.‖
Southern Power also have high expectations through the lower grades. The Women‘s side had their best season in 2013- finishing runners-up, and there is an expectation that the Under 19s and Division Three sides will join them in playing finals football. "
The club have not had much chance to rest with a number of key projects happening over the off-season. Top of the list is the Waratah Park redevelopment.
"As I'm sure most of the football community would be aware, facility redevelopments and working with various levels of government and other stakeholders tend to take their time,"‖ Hodgson noted.
"However, within the last couple of weeks we have had meetings with the local council, AFL and other community clubs that use the oval and surrounding bike track and are making some great progress. We held our pre-season training there and will be playing more home games at Waratah in 2014 than we have in previous sea-sons and are looking forward to the day when we can make it our full time home. "
"We have confirmed Blum and National Workforce as our major sponsors for the next 2 seasons and have signed on HeartKids NSW as our Match ball sponsor. "
"As a club we wanted to become more involved with the community and as one of our members is a HeartKids Dad we thought they would be perfect to partner with. It also provides a valuable reminder to our members and the wider football community to appreciate life, give back to the community and play the game with a big heart! "
The club is also excited after years of hard work to field a side in the Under 14 Youth Girls competition.
These projects all form part of a greater plan according to Hodgson.
"The ultimate aim of any football club is to win premierships and we are no different there in our push for pro-motion to the Premier Division," she said.
"However, our long-term aim is to ensure we continue to kick goals off the field which includes moving into a redeveloped Waratah Park, reforming our Division 5 squad for the 2015 season and continuing to build upon our relationships with our sponsors, junior clubs and the community."‖
Last Modified on 28/03/2014 18:20
