Shepparton co-coaches Ted Lindon (pictured) and Xavier Stevenson are buoyant heading into this weekend’s monster duel with Echuca.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
There will be no dwelling on the past, internally at least, when Shepparton faces Echuca in the Goulburn Valley League grand final rematch at Deakin Reserve on Saturday.
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Bears co-coach Xavier Stevenson said the post-mortem of the 96-point defeat in the 2024 decider was run and done.
Now it’s a new challenge, with both sides coming into the round five clash undefeated and itching to deal the other a blow.
And Shepparton has looked impressive to date.
The Bears (first) and Murray Bombers (third) get a chance to test themselves against a top-four side for the first time this season and Stevenson is keen to tackle the dynastic benchmark of the preceding three seasons.
“These are the games of football you want to play,” Stevenson said.
“They’ve been the benchmark for three to four years now, so you know it’s going to be won or lost in the contest.
“So far over the last 12 months we’ve shown signs of where we’ve been able to do that, but, obviously, we haven’t been able to sustain it for long enough; it goes without saying, on grand final day we weren’t able to do it at all.
“We’ve addressed it after the grand final and we were all disappointed with how it transpired.
“Football clubs have to move quickly; we’ve had a turnover of individuals since then, individuals that weren’t exposed to that now playing in our side.
“I wouldn’t say it would be talked about all that much internally this week — we know both teams are probably a bit different than they were from last year.”
That will be at the very least true for Shepparton, which will be without the experienced Liam Duguid through a groin injury sustained in last week’s 39-point win over Mooroopna.
Shepparton’s leadership group is itching for another shot at Echuca following last season’s grand final disappointment.
Photo by
Megan Fisher
Former AFL man Tom Clurey is another out of the line-up after his two-game stint with the Bears came to an end, poised to return to Katamatite if he can overcome a leg injury in the early stages of round four.
Stevenson also looks set to miss with a shoulder issue, but the Bears mentor is confident the club’s depth can cover it in what is quite likely an early shout for the match of the round.
The other could well be at Princess Park.
Shepparton Swans, off to their best start since 2014, host Rochester in another intriguing clash.
Both come in 4-0 and the Swans welcome back a handy quartet with Andrew Riordan, Nathan Rachele, Zac Alderton and star teen Oliver Warburton bolstering the Swans for the fourth versus fifth clash.
“We want to try and build a bit of stability with our team week in, week out,” coach Jedd Wright said.
“We know Rochy have been pretty impressive, so we’ll need to be up for the task.”
Meanwhile, Shepparton United, still seeking its first win, will make the journey to Kings Park to tackle Seymour, which is coming off a maiden win of its own.
In a rare occurrence, Mooroopna and Euroa remain winless after four rounds, meeting at the Cats’ home turf desperate to get their season running.
One of Benalla or Tatura’s difficult campaigns will see a spark of light as they do battle at Benalla Showgrounds, while Kyabram will be hoping to keep its red-hot start going with a top-six clash against Mansfield.
Saturday's One FM GVL broadcast match is between Shepparton and Echuca live from 1.30pm at Deakin Reserve, while on Sunday, the KDL broadcast match is between Avenel and Nagambie, live from 1.30pm.
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