EDFL 2019: Pascoe Vale coach Digby Morrell pleased with season

Pascoe Vale has plenty of work to do in the second half of the season to make finals for the first time since 2016, but coach Digby Morrell says his side has reason to be confident.

Pascoe Vale coach Digby Morrell calls the shots. Picture: Josie Hayden

Pascoe Vale is targeting some big scalps in the second half of the EDFL Premier Division season in a bid to end a two-year finals absence.

The Panthers sit in fifth position with a 5-1-3 record under first-year coach Digby Morrell and will face the four sides above them at home in the remaining rounds.

Questions have been raised about Pascoe Vale’s top-four prospects after losses to leading contenders Greenvale (21 points), Keilor (four points) and an injury-hit Aberfeldie (21 points).

But the new-look side did hammer fourth-ranked Strathmore by 66 points in Round 4.

“It’s obviously frustrating for the group, but we’re still a group that’s understanding how to win those games,” Morrell said.

“Our guys should be confident going into those games (in the second half of the year).

“They’ve just got to continue to get that drive to actually finish those games off.

“We’ve controlled huge elements of all of those games against three top sides.

“There’s a lot of positives to take away.

“If we just look ultimately at the result, we’re probably short-changing ourselves.”

The Panthers recorded a draw against lowly Glenroy in Round 6 despite having 10 more scoring shots.

But they have also scored emphatic wins against teams below them, meaning their percentage (139.32) is the third best in the competition.

Morrell said he was satisfied with how his team was progressing.

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“We need to obviously beat a couple of those top sides to play finals, and we think if we can continue to keep improving like we do each week, then that’s a possibility,” he said. “Our draw against Glenroy, although it was frustrating, was a great learning curve for the group. We’ve been able to continue to improve on the back of that.”

Recruits Ben Allan, Errol McConnell and Liam Ogden have shone in the midfield for Pascoe Vale.

Champion Luke Foster and the ever-consistent Kristian Economou have impressed in defence, while Matthew Watson has 27 goals from nine appearances.

Josh Cauchi is starting to find form for Pascoe Vale. Picture: Josie Hayden

Josh Cauchi also has 17 majors to his name after booting five against Airport West in Round 9 in his best performance of the season.

“Josh is getting better each game coming off a knee injury last year, so I expect his second half of the year will be really positive for us,” Morrell said.

After a week off, Pascoe Vale will host Greenvale in a bumper clash on July 6.

“Across the board, they are a really consistent and even team,” Morrell said. “If we want to play finals, we’ve got to beat those sides. There’s not necessarily any more emphasis on it, but it’s an important game.”

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