Sunbury Kangaroos coach Chris Meacham dreading selection for Round 1 of 2015 RDFL season

AN off-season recruiting drive has Sunbury Kangaroos looking on the up for the coming Riddell District Football League season. But it will also mean selection headaches come Round 1.

RDFL Football: Sunbury Kangaroos versus Diggers Rest at Eric Boardman Resrve, sunbury. Sunbury's coach Chris Meacham. Pictures:Angie Basdekis

AT THIS time of year most football coaches cannot wait for Round 1.

But Sunbury Kangaroos coach Chris Meacham faces some serious selection headaches ahead of his side’s Riddell District Football League season opener against Rupertswood on April 18.

The club has added a raft of new faces after an off-season recruiting drive, leaving 2012 premiership coach Meacham with a difficult task.

“I’m not looking forward to picking Round 1 because there’s premiership players and a few other boys that maybe have higher expectations on themselves that may miss out,” he said.

“But that’s exactly where the club wants to be, in a strong position. After finishing fifth last year, we’ve got to make some drastic changes to compete with the Riddells and Romsey, otherwise you’re copping 60-point losses.”

The Kangaroos were one of the big early movers as silly season began last October, announcing the signings of former Geelong VFL ruckman Simon Clarke, Melton Centrals forward Adam Fenton, Rockbank defender Jordan Baumgartner, Melton South captain Matthew Sullivan and returning 2012 premiership player Joeb Ploog within a month of the 2014 season coming to an end.

The club has since added former Geelong VFL midfielder Jay Cheep (Essendon Doutta Stars) along with a handful of other “walk ins” who Meacham believes are capable of playing senior football at some stage this year.

While confident of vast improvement from his side this year, Meacham said he expected other teams to also step up including the side which finished 11th on the ladder last year but has also gone on an aggressive recruiting drive over the off-season — Macedon.

“If you listen to all the reports it will be a Romsey-Macedon grand final,” he said.

“But I honestly think the team to watch will be Diggers Rest. They’ve had five or six grand final appearances in the last 10 years and they haven’t pinched one. They’ve got a couple of good recruits, especially that bloke from Greenvale (Dean Smith), he’s an A Grade on-baller.

“We’ve got a lot of friends there. If we can’t win it, you’d love to see Diggers get one.”