Season in review: Diggers Rest knuckled down after early ‘wake-up call’
SEASON REVIEW: Three losses in five matches was an early-season slap in the face for Diggers Rest but it will ensure the Burras are primed for 2022.
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Three early losses were a “wake-up call” for Diggers Rest this year and will serve as an important lesson for 2022.
After a comfortable season-opening win over Woodend-Hesket the Burras dropped three of their next five, going down to RDFL premiership rivals Macedon, Riddell and Wallan.
The historic 142-point defeat to the Magpies served as a catalyst for the second half of the season and will no doubt be used as motivation next season.
Diggers coach Jamie Lobb conceded his players may have been underdone but was proud of the response.
“From a football point of view, we had a pretty slow start to the season and we were just starting to piece it together nicely to have a fair crack at a finals series,” he said.
“It’s hard to pinpoint, maybe guys were a bit underdone and at the end of the day that responsibility lies with me.
“I’ll put my hand up and say maybe I didn’t crack the whip hard enough but I thought we were travelling OK and coming off a year off you weren’t too sure how to gauge the scenario.
“A couple of losses early on were an eye-opener for the boys and it was good to see them react and knuckle down.
“We were putting ourselves in a good position, so I guess it’s back to planning for next season.”
The Burras finished the season with four straight wins to finish third.
Evergreen captain Cole Laurie finished the season with 18 goals, fifth most in the competition, and looks set to go around again.
As will Lobb, definitely as coach and should his form hold up, as a player.
Austin Cicero, Shaun Egan, Matt Krul and Chris Lawton all had impressive seasons but it was Taylor Hine who produced the dominant season.
The former AFL man could poll strongly on Bowen Medal night after finishing with three straight best-on-ground performances.
“Taylor was probably our standout player for the season,” Lobb said.
“We mixed up his role a little bit and he really blossomed, it was good to see him be able to move freely and his body hold up well.
“I don’t think we’ll end up having a best-and-fairest but he would have been miles in front of it.”
Diggers Rest recruited strongly after 2019, bringing in the likes of Jaidyn Caruana, Lawton, Mitch Brockwell and Ben McMahon.
Lobb isn’t expecting the club to be as active this off-season, instead looking to develop its existing talent.
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“There’s a couple of young kids I’m looking forward to seeing stick around and how they progress, Tom Schwarzenberg, Chris Lawton and James McMahon,” he said.
“The preference is always to re-sign what we’ve got.
“I don’t think we need to go too heavy on the recruiting, we’ve definitely got room there – we played low 30 points this year.
“Once I get the list sorted then I’ll step back and reassess what we need to add, it’s not like we’re going to go out and get six or seven guys in.”
Ex-AFL names, big forwards dominate local footy action
Ex-AFL players dominated with big performances in wet conditions, including one who is stranded on 99 goals, while one game was halted due to a nasty injury. See our Victorian local footy wrap.
Wallan ready for early finals challenge
In beating Macedon, Wallan proved it was a serious finals team. In the next fortnight, the Magpies will get the chance to prove if they are a premiership team.