Hard yakka begins for Gatton Hawks

Pre-season preparations are underway with the club are gearing up for the 2018, determined to put last season's dissappointment behind them.

DETERMINED: Shannon Hicks, Dennis Burgoyne and Daniel Nolan are gearing up for the 2018 season. Picture: Lachlan McIvor

RUGBY LEAGUE: Pipped at the final hurdle to a finals place in 2017, the Gatton Hawks are determined they won't be knocked off their perch quite so quickly next season.

Pre-season preparations are now in full swing at Cahill Park under new A-grade coach Shaun Hobson, who arrives in Gatton after leading Gladstone Valleys to two titles in the past two years.

Front row stalwart Dennis Burgoyne said the sixth place play-off loss to the Souths Tigers that abruptly ended their season still left a bad taste but the hard work was starting to put things right for 2018.

"It's pretty disappointing to go out like that but you just have to build from that, I guess,” Burgoyne said.

"We have a few new faces in the club and we should go pretty strong this year, I think.

"We'll be a big improvement this year.”

Burgoyne believed new signings Gerard Tema, Luke Nolan and Matt Craven would give the Hawks a fresh impetus ahead of the new campaign.

"I've played against a couple of them; they're decent football players. It will be good to have them here,” he said.

"It will be good to have those new faces.”

Dalby took out their first TRL crown this year after defeating defending champions Pittsworth in the grand final in September.

Burgoyne said the title was not an unrealistic aim for a talented group of players, but only if improvement is made on last season.

"Definitely, that's what we plan to do,” he said.

Forward Shannon Hicks, who started playing for the Hawks as a seven-year-old, returned to Gatton last year after two seasons away from the club.

"We won't take too much from last season. We've got a strong side this year and I think we can go one further than we did last year, definitely,” Hicks said.

On their day, the Hawks were a match for any side in the competition last year and Hicks said consistently bringing their A-game would be the key to success in 2018.

"We've got to bring it to every game. We can't play good footy for two weeks and then slack off for two weeks,” he said.

"We've got a shorter comp again this year, I think, so we need to win as many as we can.”

Hobson wants to stamp his own mark on the Hawks.

"I've certainly got my own style and different ways but it is more about taking what I know and taking what the club knows and the players know, and putting that together for the best outcome for everybody,” he said.