Garfield’s 2007 brains trust of assistant coach Brent Eastwell, president Neville Bow, ‘interstate recruit’ Lincoln Withers and coach Ben Soumilas at last week’s preseason training run. Withers has returned to Beswick Street from Pakenham, but will fly in to play with the Stars this year after relocating to Darwin next month.Doveton is getting serious about netball in 2007 and new netball club president Debbie Henwood welcomed coach Bob Dodd to the fold on the weekend. Dodd, a Cora Lynn resident, will play a major part in lifting the Doves up the netball ladder and his first task is to oversee recruiting of talent for the club’s Agrade team for next season.A SWITCH from PAKENHAM to GARFIELD is not the only change star midfielder Lincoln Withers is making to his life, according to word around the traps.
Withers and his partner Katie, who hails from Alice Springs, have decided to move to Darwin to live early in the new year.
He will play (as he has for the best part of a decade) with local club WARATAHS in the NTFL in summer and then has apparently agreed to fly down to play with Garfield during the winter.
That journey makes the trips to MAFFRA and SALE during the year seem insignificant.
STEVE Pursell has been reappointed as senior coach at WARRAGUL INDUSTRIALS for 2007.
The Dusties have yet to announce an assistant to support the former ROC premiership coach, but are hopeful that one of two experienced NOBLE PARK players will sign up before Christmas and fill the position.
The Dusties have picked up mercurial NILMADARNUM forward Mick Santo and Darren Taylor has returned to the club after almost two years out of football.
Taylor, who also played at POOWONG, has not pulled on the boots since sustaining an ankle injury in round one of the 2005 season.
Young ruckman Ben Hopkins has returned from overseas and dual bestandfairest halfback flanker Dean Moore has also been training and should provide the Dusties with more depth this season.
Off field, club stalwart Ron Wood has replaced Brian ‘Butch’ Hemming as president.
Wood has been heavily involved with the Dusties since the late 1970s and it will be his second stint at the helm after occupying the post between 2002 and 2005.
CASEY SCORPIONS captain Steve Harrison has told the club he will step down from the leadership post in 2007 and there is significant speculation about his replacement.
While several experienced Scorpions have either left Casey Fields or are tipped to depart, classy onballer Nigel Carmody has remained loyal and is the favourite to fill his good mate’s boots when the side takes the field this year.
WHILE on possible departures, 2006 CASEY SCORPION’s bestandfairest winner David ‘Maxi’ Biagi is believed to be on the way back to his home club HAMPTON PARK.
A Scorpions’ source said that the Redbacks had made a bid to snare Biagi and with Hampton Park looking a lot closer to a premiership in the Casey Cardinia League than its VFL counterpart, the lure might be a bit too much.
WGLFL 2006 league runnersup, SALE, has reappointed former DANDENONG VFA star Darren Hall as senior coach and will again be supported by former NORTH MELBOURNE premiership player Stuart Anderson.
Luke Henderson, who steered the Magpies to a premiership in the reserves last season, has also been reappointed and the Magpies expect to hold almost its entire list in 2007.
The only exception may be talented young wingman Tim Bristow, who is looking to move to Tasmania to further his education.
PAKENHAM legend Glen ‘Sunny’ Wouters is among the Lions star recruits for 2007 after a season off.
Among other additions at the Toomuc Reserve are youngster Luke Walker who has returned after a year at WANGARATTA ROVERS and David Sheahan who will make another comeback from injury.
Club sources say that, despite several bigname losses, there is an air of quiet confidence that the club can again finish among the top teams.
PLENTY of rumours about possible CRANBOURNE recruits have been flying around the traps with one name being all but confirmed from a source deep inside the Eagles nest.
Ruckman Nick Fraser, a 2006 premiership player with MITTA MITTA, is said to be on board, along with former star Cranbourne junior Sean Owens, who will return after a stint at KARINGAL.
Ray George, another former Eagle, who took 2006 off, is also a chance to play with his home club next year, but is currently training with VFL club FRANKSTON in the hope of going a step higher.
IT’S a little out of school, but we couldn’t resist.
PAKENHAM goalsneak and sometimes defender Evan Broadbent has never been shy, but he was a little too quick to issue some loud verbal ‘advice’ to the English cricketers at the Adelaide Oval last week.
Security staff apparently took offence to Evan’s spray and he was swiftly ejected from the ground.
Spies tell us that a much quieter Broadbent managed to find his way back in soon after, but kept a far lower profile from then on.
WEST Gippsland Latrobe’s nine team league will likely become 10 as of 2008 after the Victorian Country Football League told WONTHAGGI POWER that it would be forced to leave the Alberton Football League at the end of next season.
The Power, a hybrid that resulted from a merge between Wonthaggi and Wonthaggi Rovers two years ago, has dominated the Alberton league since and smaller rival clubs have had enough.
The WGLFL has been flagged as the competition it is most likely to join, thereby creating a tenth team.
In other news from the recent WGLFL annual general meeting, respected MOE official Brian McKenzie was elected president of the league, replacing Adrian Gravener.
MORWELL has picked up a big signing with the arrival of the 2006 MidGippsland League bestandfairest Liam Visser.
Visser, a 24yearold centreman, has been a prolific kick winner and threetime premiership player with YINNAR and was keenly sought after.
He is expected to make a big impact on the WGLFL under Tigers’ coach Jason Sheriff who has been reappointed for 2007.
LEONGATHA is yet to appoint a senior coach for 2007 after having a big crack at delisted AFL KANGAROO Troy Makepeace without success.
Makepeace was also approached by his former club MOE, together with TRARALGON, but hopes to further his career via the AFL preseason draft.
If he is not selected, the strong word is he will almost certainly play in the VFL with the CASEY SCORPIONS.
