Local footy: Airport West players make big sacrifice for 2021 EDFL season
As local football clubs prepare for salary cap cuts in 2021, a group of Airport West players have demonstrated their loyalty to the club while the Eagles have also locked in a big signing.
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A group of experienced Airport West players have made a major sacrifice in the search for success and will play for the love of the game in 2021.
With salary caps slashed by 50 per cent statewide next season, the show of loyalty has allowed the Essendon District Football League Division 1 club to bolster its list.
The Eagles were relegated from Premier Division in 2019 after claiming the Division 1 flag the previous year and are hungry to return to the top flight.
Division 1 sides will have $85,000 to spend on players next season.
“We’re fortunate in that we secured everyone well under the cap,” Airport West coach Jimmy House said.
“We’ve got a lot of blokes playing for nothing next year – older blokes who just want success at the club and to be back in premier.
“It sums up the quality of the individuals. It’s respect for me, it’s respect for the football club and respect for each other.
“It’s a testament to the work that’s gone in before (I arrived) to get quality individuals to the footy club.”
House is yet to lead Airport West in an official match after replacing Geoff Maddern following the 2019 campaign.
But he has been busy since the season was canned and said the club had “recruited pretty well”.
The Eagles have secured the return of some “homegrown talent” but House said the time had not come to reveal his signings.
2018 premiership player Ned Gentile, who is a one-point player, has returned after he was set to take the field for Essendon Doutta Stars this season.
The classy forward/midfielder shared Calder Cannons’ best-and-fairest award last season and comes back full-time as a one-point player.
Gentile was named in Calder’s best players 12 times from 18 NAB League games last year and booted 15 goals.
“More importantly, he’s a quality kid. He’s an outstanding young man with a bright future ahead of him,” House said.
“He’s got the potential to be a future captain of Airport West footy club.”
Star goalkicker Dean Limbach (Diamond Creek), ex-Gold Coast rookie Zak Saad (Mallee Eagles), Liam Forbes (Pascoe Vale), Adam Meiorin (Oak Park) and Patrick Balta (soccer) joined the Eagles before the season was cancelled.
Airport West has also locked in Wassim Rafihi, who has ample experience at AFL clubs, as its head of development and under-18.5s coach.
House said Rafihi was a “really positive acquisition” for the club.
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