Bacchus Marsh’s Daniel Velden brings up magical milestone on Saturday

Bacchus Marsh will celebrate premiership player and club great Daniel Velden’s 300th senior match when the BFL season kicks off on Saturday.

Daniel Velden in action for Bacchus Marsh. Picture: David Crosling

It’s the magical milestone three years in the making.

Bacchus Marsh’ Daniel Velden will bring up 300 senior games on Saturday after being left hanging when the Ballarat Football League season was called off in 2021.

The Cobras great should have been celebrating his triple century in 2020 but COVID has proved a difficult opponent for the trusty defender.

Velden, a 2016 premiership player, will become the first player in BFL history to play 300 senior matches and needs just 11 games to equal club games record holder Michael Dodd.

Cobras coach Tom German was delighted to see a club great reach an important milestone.

Bacchus Marsh captain Tyson Shea and Daniel Velden before the 2016 premiership.

“He was looking to get it done in the 2020 season and that got ruled out and then last year he missed a couple of games and got stranded,” German said.

“It’s an amazing achievement, he’s a great person on and off the field and he’s been a pleasure to coach.

“He can play tall or small, he’s very durable, he’s just turned 37, so he’s kept his body in good shape.

“He’s already said this will be his final year, so we just needed to get him over that milestone line and he wants to go out with a bang.”

Velden played eight of 10 games last season and was due to celebrate his 300th against Melton at Maddingley Park before the season was canned.

Instead, he’ll be lauded when the Cobras host Ballarat on Saturday.

“The club is holding a big function and a lot of past players have been contacted,” German said.

“The club is making a pretty big show of it and rightfully so.

“The weather is going to be nice, which will be good for Daniel and his family, it will be a good day.”

The Cobras welcome Ballarat to Maddingley Oval to kick off the season.

The Swans were one of the competition’s big improvers last season, finishing fifth, ahead of Bacchus Marsh in seventh on percentage.

Bacchus Marsh have welcomed dangerous forward Rex Hickman (Mallee Eagles), Max Eastmure (Torquay) and former VFL-listed defenders Jack Williams and Jason Robinson (both Camperdown).

Hickman will add scoring firepower alongside skipper Jake Owen and Aaron Willetts, while Williams and Robinson add class in defence.

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German believes his team can challenge anyone on the league.

“We fancy our chances against most sides in the competition,” he said.

“We’ve just got to play the brand of footy we’ve been training for and implementing over the last couple of years.”

Elsewhere, Melton South host Melton in the local derby, North Ballarat welcomes Sunbury, Sebastopol takes on Darley and East Point begins with the bye.