EFL 2019: Whitehorse Pioneers in finals contention in Division 3

Eastern Football League clubs have traditionally struggled with promotion, but Whitehorse Pioneers find themselves in finals contention at the halfway mark of the season.

Jayson Fabris gets the ball on his boot. Picture: Davis Harrigan

Whitehorse Pioneers could be one of just a few recently promoted Eastern Football League teams to make finals the year after winning a premiership.

Whitehorse won last year’s Division 4 flag and is in contention to make the Division 3 top four in 2019.

It started the season 1-3 but has since won five of its past six games to sit fourth.

Clubs have traditionally struggled to make the jump but the Pioneers are bucking the trend. Whitehorse captain Maverick Gleed said team cohesion and “getting the right people in the right spots” had been the keys to the form turnaround.

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The Pioneers lost about half their grand final team, with premiership players Andrew Padbury, Alistair Quinn, Damian Bertacco, brothers Matthew and Anthony Mariani, Noah Khan and Jesse Hockey headlining the departures.

But a newlook side again has them as finals contenders.

Under-19 products Jayson Fabris, Troy Dynes, Nick Repalust and Dan Tallariti are making an impact in the seniors, while developing ruckman Nathan White is “getting better every game and giving us first use in the middle”.

Recruits Tom Young and Bart Wallace are also finding their feet at Springfield Park.

Young has been in the list of best players the past two weeks and Wallace has kicked 15 goals in his past six games.

“I reckon we’re starting to get the balance right now and guys are getting a bit more comfortable with each other, getting to know each other and some bonding — we had a day at the greyhounds and Thursday nights we spin the wheel,” Gleed said.

“It’s just about having a bit of fun so you enjoy being down at the club … especially at this time of year when it’s cold and wet.”

Maverick Gleed after last year’s premiership. Picture: Davis Harrigan

Doncaster was the most recent EFL club to make finals the year following a premiership win when it finished fifth after the home-and-away rounds in Division 1 in 2016.

Montrose also achieved the feat in Division 1 in 2014 after its premiership success in the second tier the previous season.

“After four rounds when we were 1-3, I thought we were going to struggle to win five games. I think a few people were worried but once we’ve got guys in positions where they’re better suited, things have started to gel a bit,” Gleed said.

“You’ve just got to make sure you come with the right mindset every game, and that can be hard in the middle of winter.

“We’ve just got to keep beating the teams we should beat and hopefully knock off a couple in the top four.”

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