EFL: Upper Gully’s Stephen De Luca backs group to overcome pre-season uncertainty
An EFL Division 1 coach has declared his playing group will be ready for whatever pre-season scenario should arise heading into 2021, in its pursuit of a finals berth.
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Upper Ferntree Gully coach Stephen De Luca has backed his group to overcome the prospect of a late pre-season in his club’s hunt to return to finals next season.
De Luca took over in the Kings’ head coaching gig at the end of 2019 but is yet to oversee an official match.
While a starting time frame for pre-season remains up in the air, the former North Heidelberg assistant has declared his group will be ready, whatever the scenario.
“The focus now is being as prepared for all the potential scenarios that we’ll be faced with,” De Luca said.
“We’ll be ready for one or a resemblance of one before Christmas, but that’s unlikely, and we’ll be prepared to start after Christmas.
“As unfamiliar as this is, it’s an opportunity for reflection and preparation that we’ve never had before, because we’re not in that week to week grind.
“We’re actually stopping and thinking about what we can do better, and I’m safely assuming that I’m not the only coach doing that right now.”
The club enjoyed a fruitful off-season of recruiting, signing former VFL defender Luke Tynan whose CV includes a Port Melbourne best and fairest, and versatile Casey duo David De Araungo and Michael Riseley.
De Luca said while the club would look at bringing in new talent in preparation for 2021, the priority would be the existing players.
“A hundred per cent I’ll be backing in the group that I’ve got,” he said.
“You look at it as the season still hasn’t happened yet and we’ve recruited those guys for this season coming.
“If there’s opportunities … and room, we’ll have a look at that.
“They’re a loyal bunch of players and I think it’s important that we retain what we’ve got and we look after the players that have looked after us – if we have opportunities after that, we’ll look at it.”
The Kings fell agonisingly short of a finals berth in Division 1 last season, with just 2.93 per cent being the difference on the ladder.
While the salary cap for the EFL’s second tier from 2021 is expected to have an $80,000 ceiling, De Luca said his group was willing to make the necessary sacrifices in its pursuit for finals.
“Like all the other clubs, we’re just getting our head around all the new requirements and prioritising and retaining our players and from there we look forward to other opportunities,” he said.
“Our list are there for the right reasons, to play footy and to play for each other. The group felt pretty optimistic heading into the season.”
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