The Rams are coming off a good win against rivals Finley Cats at the Hardinge St Oval last weekend.
Rams senior football coach Gary Parsons said the endeavour the players showed on the weekend was a hallmark of the 48-point win last Saturday.
“It was just our intensity around the footy and putting tackle pressure on the man was really good I thought,” he said.
“It was a good team effort; everyone played their role.”
The challenge this week is against the slightly enigmatic Moama, who are on an eight game win streak of varying margins.
However, they are clearly in good form and have plenty of momentum going into this weekend’s match.
The Magpies are second on the ladder with eight wins and one loss for the season, losing to Nathalia in round one.
Meanwhile, the Rams are sixth on the ladder with five wins and four losses.
But they are ready for the challenge this week.
“We’re confident, but they’re definitely one of the best sides in the competition, being second on the ladder.
“Their ground is a fair bit smaller than ours, so we’ll need to make sure we’re up for the fight and put in the hard work in the congestion and get the ball going our way.
“We’ll definitely need our experienced guys to stand up.
“We’re down a little bit on depth, and we’ll continue to rely on everyone to step up.
“We’ve had a couple of thirds kids, two under-15s, one under-16s as subs over the last couple of weeks.
“One real positive has been that our 20th, 21st and 22nd man have all really been stepping up.
“Regardless, we expect to give Moama a challenge.”
The list has been tested heading into a tough seven-week stretch coming up, but one of the defining features of the Rams team this year has been the growth of players in roles across the field.
“We’ve had a few season ending injuries, but it’s been really refreshing to know each week that we’ve got a sub who will stand up and play a role in the team. I hope they all continue to improve.
“We’ve got three to four of our top players out, which is giving our kids and players on the fringe a real chance and while it is tough, it should be really good for our club in the long run.
“The 15 and 16 year-olds these days are all quite physically, really well-developed, and they’ve shown enough to give it a good crack at senior level.
“The season is in no means a write-off. Our aim is to beat sides above us on the ladder and take a few scalps in the latter half of the season.
“I think if we could make the finals, to test some other teams, that would be a good achievement for this season.”
