South Toowoomba looking to take the next step

AFTER a promising 2019, the Bombers are poised for a serious tilt in the AFLDD senior women’s competition.

HIGH HOPES: Chloe Crothers in action for South Toowoomba during the 2019 AFL Darling Downs season. Photo: Bev Lacey

AUSSIE RULES: The South Toowoomba Bombers were one of the success stories of the AFL senior women’s competition last year.

While they didn’t make the grand final, the improvement they showed from before round one through to the finals was immeasurable.

The growth from having less than a handful of players at pre-season training this time last year through to pushing University for a spot in the grand final is a driving force behind the club according to coach Adrian Koelmeyer.

He said having the squad witness first-hand what they can achieve has provided important motivation as they push through the pre-season this time around.

“Last year we started off with no players in the first round,” Koelmeyer said.

“We were lucky to have three or four players at this time of year at training, so to have a minimum of 12 is a big boost.

“We slowly brought in new players who learned how to play the game. Some couldn’t kick a ball or didn’t know the rules.

“We were losing by 10 goals at the start and by the end we were unlucky not to have a grand final berth.

“So far we’ve been taking things slow, working on building team spirit and trying to bring a bit more fitness and skill into it as well.”

Their breakthrough moment came in last year’s Pride Cup, where they were able to record their first win in recent years over the powerhouse Toowoomba Tigers.

Koelmeyer said the progression of these players, along with the recruitment efforts have the side poised to take further steps forward in 2020.

“We’ve got a couple of new faces that are really keen to learn the game. We look for new people that have never played before to build numbers,” he said.

“A few of our junior players will be joining us, and they’ve played since they were very young.

“To have that experience at a young age will really boost the competition this year. They can come in and make an impact.

“Most of our ladies are a bit older, so having that fitness and speed is really good for us.

“There are at least six that have come through the AFLQ representative ranks, so that will help us catch up to the likes of Tigers and Uni.”

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