Caroline Springs is limbering up for its first shot at the Western Region Football League division 1 competition.
The Lakers were elevated into the top flight by beating Yarraville-Seddon in last year’s second-tier grand final.
In the first year of a three-year plan to take the Lakers to the top flight, they hit the fast-forward button.
Lakers football manager Marc Raak said the club was rapt.
“We’re absolutely delighted with the position we’re at right now,” he said.
“We’re going into uncharted waters and don’t really know what to expect.
“We can only worry about what we can control – and that’s, obviously, making sure we had a good pre-season.
“Our practice matches, internal training and intra-club matches have been first class, so bring on the year.”
Caroline Springs will open the season against Albion at Town Centre Oval on Saturday.
That match-up was at the top of the Lakers’ fixture requests to open the season at home.
“It’s a huge game for our club, so we’re expecting a big crowd. We’ll unfurl the flag from last year’s grand final.
“We’ve got all of our past players who played in our first game at Caroline Springs six years ago coming down.”
Caroline Springs has strengthened its list from last season, but will it be enough?
So many sides have made the giant leap to the top division and returned to where they came from 12 months later with their tails between their legs.
In new recruit Keenan O’Shea, the Lakers have recruited their leader of the future.
O’Shea, brought in from St Albans, has been named co-captain with Jason Degabriele and Mathew Sutton.
“It’s sort of the young, the middle and the old,” Raak said. “‘Sutts’ being a bit of a wise head and Jase having experience.
“It’s a bit of a transition arrangement … O’Shea, maybe in the next two to three years, could hold the mantle himself.”
Doug Thomas, a one-time Werribee-listed player, will add to Caroline Springs’ midfield depth.
Home-grown youngsters Mitch Bongiovanni (from St Albans) and Jayke Ewar (Deer Park) will add speed and versatility.
With the new inclusions and the natural improvement of the list from last year, Caroline Springs fancies its chances of survival.
“We’re not going to put too much expectations … we’ve got to win a few games to stay there,” Raak said. “We think our list goes deep into the reserves.”
Caroline Springs expects key position player Brian Lake to play the majority of games. Lake has upped his television commitments with Fox Footy, but is still champing at the bit to get on the ground for the Lakers.
“He’s real keen,” Raak said. “He’s been training the house down.”
In other round one games, four-time defending champion Deer Park will unfurl its premiership flag at a blockbuster clash with Altona, a preliminary finalist last year.
Sunshine Kangaroos and Spotswood will be hoping to get their seasons off to a good start at Kinder Smith Reserve.
There will be a Wyndham derby between Werribee Districts and Wyndhamvale at Soldiers Reserve, while Hoppers Crossing and St Albans will play on Good Friday.
“We don’t ask much from the WRFL, but we get an opportunity to put forward a wish list and it was high on our agenda to get our first game at home to have a great day for our supporter base,” Raak said.
“We hope we’re in the right space at the moment to stay there, but time will tell, particularly once we’ve played every side once.”
