‘Dangerous and unpredictable’: The recruits set to fire Lilydale

The new Lilydale coach has wasted no time addressing key areas at the Division 2 club — with an NT footballer and an ex-Oakleigh Charger among a package of signings.

EFNL 2025: Josh Scrivano is among a package of Lilydale recruits. Picture: Supplied

Incoming Lilydale coach Duncan Jones says there’s no ceiling on his expectations this season, with a package of recruits set to boost the club’s on-field fortunes.

The former VFL assistant landed the Falcons’ head role in September, inheriting a team which won six matches from 18 starts in Division 2 last season.

And he’s wasted no time addressing the club’s needs in his bid to improve on its ninth-placed finish.

Josh Scrivano is the latest signing, arriving after three seasons with Southern outfit Skye.

The defender is currently playing for the Banks Bulldogs in the Northern Territory league and is touted to lift Lilydale’s back six.

“We wanted to focus pretty heavily on skilled players in our backline to generate offensive ball movement, and Josh fits that bill really well,” Jones said.

“He’s playing up at Banks in the Northern Territory at the moment, so he’ll link up with us just after their season in mid-to-late March, depending on how they go.

“It’s great for us because we get a conditioned footballer that’s going to walk into our side in Round 1 and be ready to perform.”

Key forward Max Dooley has arrived from Division 1 outfit Doncaster, with the ex-Oakleigh Charger reuniting with Jones who was an assistant at the Coates league club.

“I’ve seen his talent at Coates league level … and he’s only 20 years old and played 20-25 senior games for Doncaster in Premier and Division 1.

“He’s someone you can build around for the next five to 10 years … he’s an absolute quality person as well.

“We had a look at our list and our stats from last year and realised we probably needed a bit more firepower up forward.”

Meanwhile, fellow forward signing Corey Waite (Montrose, Division 1) will “add a bit of potency”.

“We’ve given him a number of roles in how we set up and he’s excelled in every one of them,” Jones said.

There’s also high hopes for small forward Kynan French, with the young gun making an impact at senior level for Woori Yallock in Outer East’s top division last year.

“He’s still eligible for under-19s … but I don’t think (the under-19s) will be seeing much of him – he played 16 or 17 senior games for Woori Yallock last year,” Jones said.

The Falcons went winless in Division 1 in 2023 and were relegated to Division 2 ahead of 2024.

Most of the list has re-signed, and despite just six wins combined across the past two seasons and a second-bottom finish last year, Jones said of his expectations: “We don’t put a cap on it.”

“You want to build on what happened last year and you want to try and take that next step.

“We’re really excited by the guys we’ve brought in, the way they’ve been training and adapting to a new game style … we feel like we’ve got a really dangerous and unpredictable attack.”

Lilydale opens its season at home to Croydon on April 5.