Article by Caitlin Arnold
It will be a case of back to the future for the Newtown Breakaways in the upcoming 2014 season.
Following the departure of their coach of the past two years, Peter Tennant, the Breakaways welcome back a favourite daughter of the club, Jamie Robertson, to fill the role as Senior Coach.
One of the club’s founding members, Robertson is one of the Breakaways most successful coaches having lead the team to five premierships victories including four consecutive, and another coming in as runners up.
"I have a vested interest in the Breakaways and there is a lot of sentimentality coaching the team, as I have a lot of history with NBFC, being the founder. So, not only am I passionate about footy but I am doubly passionate about the Breakaways," says returning coach Robertson.
Assisting Robertson when available will be former coach Tennant, and highly revered ex-Breakaway, Natasha Devlin.
Following the upward trend of growth in Sydney Women’s AFL, Newtown, too, have experienced an influx of new players to their club. With varying backgrounds in other sports, the 2014 recruits at the Breakaways even include a British international in Frankie Hocking, who "boasts a long and successful career in soccer".
With the expansion of their interchange bench, has come local sponsorship support. The support of companies such as Domain and the Newtown Hotel has allowed the Breakaways to continue making their mark on the Inner-West.
Finishing out of the finals race in 2013, Newtown has turned their pre-season training up a notch. Taking advantage of their experienced players, the Breakaways have spent this time molding their new recruits with various sporting backgrounds into AFL aficionados. The focus has been to build a tight-knit unit with a positive attitude while pushing each other to their limits.
"When we first started the Breakaways, after ‘breaking away’ from Sydney Uni, we only had a handful of experienced players. As we built the side, it was this leadership in the team that allowed new players to quickly rise to the same level."
"I see this potential in new players like Ci-anna Smith, who has come from a rugby background and Tram Nguyen. So, I am very excited by the quality of our newbies and the passion of our returning players."
With so many new players on board, concentration on the football fundamentals and general fitness have also been vital over the pre-season.
"The team has been beefing up their skills in positioning, hand balling, ground work and contests. With the addition of some very fit and strong players, the team’s ability to contest the ball is looking good for the 2014 season," says club representative Genavieve Zoeller.
Putting their hard pre-season work to the test, recent trial matches against the Western Wolves, UNSW Eastern Suburbs and Wollongong, produced solid results including two wins.
Having lost long-time Breakaways Nikki Low, Brooke Davis and precision kicker Max Van Dyke this year, Newtown are certainly thrilled with their new lineup.
Standouts amongst recruits for the Breakaways are Elise "Sticky Hands" Nagoh, as their new forward pocket, as well as Belinda Small and Clare Murphy who are set to bolster the pace of the midfield.
Of the returning Newtown Breakaways, Codie Briggs and Alex Schroder are touted as the ones to build on their 2013 form.
"While Codie had some experience in AFL prior to joining the squad, Alex converted from a soccer background and has been a natural, absorbing every element of the game," says Zoeller.
"Some winning traits about these two players are that their skills aren’t restricted to mid field play: both players are highly versatile and can be a lethal force on the half forward line."
Stacy Cross, the team’s "go-to fullback" is also set to standout amongst the pack in this, her second year playing AFL.
The Newtown Breakaways play Macquarie University on 12 April 2014 at Blacktown International Sportspark.
Last Modified on 10/04/2014 12:30
