WRFL: How Point Cook Centrals are building for Division 1 future
Point Cook Centrals have bold ambitions after a claiming the WRFL Division 3 flag in 2018 and exceeding external expectations last year, as coach Darren Findlay explains.
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Point Cook Centrals are eyeing a place in the Western Region Football League’s top flight by 2022 on the back of a growing senior squad and thriving junior program.
The Sharks have made significant progress in the past three seasons, lifting themselves from sixth position in 2017 to the Division 3 flag the following year.
They completed the step up to Division 2 with aplomb last year, finishing third on the ladder at the end of the home-and-away campaign before a first-week finals exit.
Coach Darren Findlay said the commitment to homegrown talent had paid dividends.
“We’ve tried to tick the boxes as we go along in regards to getting personnel in and making sure we still develop our juniors,” Findlay said.
“We don’t go out and recruit 10 guys and drop off our kids. We’re pretty strong on still maintaining we keep our juniors involved right through.
“We’ve got a lot of local guys playing in our team, but you do need to change your roster a little bit. You’re always going to get guys who leave and you’ve got to replace them – that’s just local footy.
“If you get three years out of a player, sometimes that’s a bonus.”
The Sharks have wasted little time readying themselves for a flag tilt next season, locking away several key players.
League best-and-fairest winner Brent Sheean, reigning club best-and-fairest Matthew Wright, premiership captain Luke Henderson and premiership player Kurt Mayne are among those to re-commit.
Findlay said he expected to retain “at least 90 per cent” of his senior squad.
“We’ve done that pretty consistently since 2017,” he said.
“We have 70-odd at training at things like that.
“2017, my first year there, was a bit of a struggle, but we got through it and got the numbers there. Since pre-season leading into 2018, we’re consistently getting 50-70 on the track, and most of those guys have stayed on.
“Our retention rate has probably been one of the best in the league, so it says something about the club.
“They’re a pretty tight group, which makes a huge difference.”
The Sharks’ commitment to developing from within is set to hold them in good stead as local clubs confront cuts to the salary cap in 2021.
While Point Cook Centrals deserved plenty of praise for making finals at in their first Division 2 campaign, Findlay said there was “unfinished business”.
“We were almost a little bit disappointed finishing fourth,” he said.
“A lot of people say it was a great effort, first year in, but we thought the group could have made it to at least a prelim.
“A couple of things didn’t go our way (in the elimination final against Parkside), but from where we’ve come from I suppose we’ve done really well all things considered.”
But Findlay is wary of the fact opposition sides are likely to know a lot more about his players entering next season.
Point Cook Centrals will likely go into 2021 among the leading premiership contenders – a far cry from last year when it was a promoted team few expected to make any sizeable impact on the competition.
“I think we flew under the radar for a couple of years there, but now I think more people probably take us as a serious threat,” Findlay said.
“That’s not being arrogant or anything like that. I think we may have surprised a few people, but internally we know what we’re about and go about it in our own way.”
Findlay said the Sharks planned to add much-needed height to their line-up over the coming months.
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