A LONG Wimmera league first round will draw to a close on Tuesday evening when the Horsham Demons host the Horsham Saints at Horsham City Oval.
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The defending premiers will step onto the playing field for the first time since the grand final and the Demons are aiming to improve on last year’s exit in the second week of finals.
Nothing will be left in the sheds for the Anzac Day derby with both coaches expecting a physical encounter.
Demons coach Louie Dalziel said it was always physical against the Saints.
“I’ll be expecting our guys to go out there and exert a lot of pressure on the ball,” he said.
“The Saints are also a hard-running side so we need to be in hard but we’ve recruited well to make sure we can run hard as well.”
Saints coach Luke Fisher echoed Dalziel’s comments.
“We need to be able to match them physically,” he said.
“If we do that, then we will back our running game because we know we have enough polish to finish things off.”
For the new Saints coach it is an familiar rivalry.
“I’m sure I will find out a bit more about it on Tuesday, but we are really just trying to focus on what we are doing,” Fisher said. “I feel like we are ready.
“It has been a long pre-season and the boys are really hungry to get things going.”
Likewise, the Demons have been training since November last year.
Dalziel said there was little he needed to say to get his team excited for the match.
“It is finals-like for us,” he said.
“It’s round one, it’s playing the Saints and it’s Anzac Day.
“If the boys are not jumping out of their skins for this, then I’m not sure what they would be for.”
The side has been training for more than four months to get to this point.
Fisher expects to get an even contribution from his whole team.
“I’m hoping that all 21 blokes explode out of the blocks,” he said.
“We are going to be a team this year that is going to rely on team performances rather than individuals.”
If the boys are not jumping out of their skins for this, then I’m not sure what they would be for.
- Louie Dalziel
It is an approach mirrored by Dalziel, who will make a concerted effort not to single players out.
“We have named 21 players and we need all 21 to play their role in the team in order to be successful,” Dalziel said.
“I’m not asking Brad Hartigan to go out there to get 40 touches and we don’t need someone else to kick a bunch of goals.”
The Demons have made strong efforts in recruiting new players this season and the side will feature a few new faces.
“There will be three or few players new to seniors footy,” Dalziel said.
“Then there are another three players coming in for their first game at the club.
“So that’s seven or eight new players to the side that were not there last season.”
- The game’s first bounce will follow an Anzac ceremony at 6.30pm.