Hurstbridge prepare for NFL Division 1 season with trio of high-profile practice matches
Hurstbridge will steel itself for one of the strongest Division 1 seasons in recent memory with a trio of high-profile practice matches, including two EDFL heavyweights.
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Hurstbridge has set itself a big challenge in 2020 — and that’s just in the pre-season.
The Bridges have locked in a trio of practice matches against heavyweights to prepare for what could be one of the toughest NFL Division 1 campaigns in recent years.
The club will face EDFL Division 1 runner-up East Keilor (March 14) before a clash against NFL Division 2 runner-up Banyule (March 21).
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Hurstbridge will wrap up its pre-season preparations against EDFL Premier Division finalist Pascoe Vale (March 28) ahead of a Round 1 trip to Heidelberg (April 4).
Bridges coach Jarrod Tilley said his players were looking forward to testing themselves against quality opposition.
“They’ve all recruited pretty well and they were all very strong last year,” Tilley said.
“We’ve played a couple of intra clubs now but the boys are pretty keen to get into the practice matches.”
The Bridges were arguably the surprise packet of last season, remaining in finals contention until late in the campaign before finishing eighth.
Tilley knows his club can’t afford to rest on its laurels as it eyes a finals berth.
“It’s a competition where every side is capable of beating every side on their day,” he said.
“If you’re not prepared and you’re not ready to compete, then you’ll find yourself in relegation trouble.
“If we put our best foot forward, then hopefully we can continue to move ourselves up the ladder. We can’t afford to switch off for a single week.
“Everyone plays football to win and play finals … that’s what everyone remembers and hopefully we can start well, get on a roll and put ourselves in a position to play in September.”
Two-time NFL league best-and-fairest winner Rohan Davies (Corowa-Rutherglen) and Bridges favourite Tom Grimes (Warrandtye) are important additions.
Tyson Old (Northcote Park) and Jack Stewart (Laurimar) are also new arrivals but are listed at Coburg and Box Hill in the VFL respectively.
“From all reports, Tyson is doing really well down at Coburg, so it will probably be a week-by-week proposition,” Tilley said.
“Hopefully he’s playing at Coburg, but if not, we’ll happily reap the rewards of having him in our team.
“Jack is still very young, hopefully he gets a game at Box Hill but it’s obviously hard at Box Hill due to their alliance with Hawthorn.”