It has been a perennial contender in Cricket Shepparton’s A-grade Haisman Shield competition since arriving in the association four years ago, the time is now for Nagambie to take the next step.
Qualifying for the finals series in each of their four campaigns, the Lakers have reached the semi-final stage of the season on three occasions, but have yet to break through into a grand final.
And while this hasn’t always been their own doing, with the club unfortunately missing out on the opportunity to play off in the 2020 decider due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Lakers have had no shortage of on-field finals heartbreak.
There was last season’s qualifying final, where Nagambie lost by just four runs to eventual premier Mooroopna, and when it went out in straight sets in 2021 after finishing the home-and-away season on top of the ladder.
Lakers fans have waited patiently for a shot at Haisman Shield glory, and skipper Mark Nolan and his troops will be hoping season 2022-23 is the one in which they deliver.
Speaking in the lead-up to the beginning of the season, which has already been pushed back a week due to wet weather, president Steven Brook was optimistic in regards to the position the club found itself in.
“We are tracking pretty well. We are expecting to field strong sides across the board and as a whole numbers are healthy,” Brook said.
“There will be good competition for spots, which is always a great spot to be in, and while the weather has impacted our ability to train, when we have been on the track the boys have looked really good.”
When it comes to the A-grade side, Nagambie has locked in two new additions, with Jarryd Shepherd returning to the club from Rushworth and Zac Winter-Irving coming back from Queensland.
They are set to join a squad already packed to the brim with elite talent such as Nolan brothers Mark and Luke, James Auld and Jono Moore, and Brook said he expected to see continued improvement this season.
“I think there is definitely scope for improvement this season and I am expecting us to be quite strong in A-grade,” he said.
“We are lucky in the fact we have guys like the Nolan brothers leading the way and are hoping we can give them a bit more support through the middle order.
“I am certainly excited to see how they go out on the field this year.”
The Lakers did get hit with a slight blow on the personnel front over the off-season, with star opening bowler Nathan Fothergill set to take a year off playing cricket.
But Brook said he had full confidence that the youth coming through was capable of stepping up in Fothergill’s absence.
“I am confident the young kids we’ve got, like Will O’Brien, can really step up and thrive with more opportunity,” he said.
“Obviously Nathan was a really good player for us, but it is exciting to get more of a look at our youngsters and we are optimistic about how they’ll go.”
As for his goal for the season, Brook said it would be all about making the finals and then going on from there.
“I’d like to think we can really challenge this year,” he said.
“Our first aim will be to make the finals, finishing as high as we can, and then we’ll go from there.
“We know how strong other teams like Numurkah and Mooroopna are, so we’ll just go into the season hoping to compete with them.”