Shepparton United playing coach Lewis Coyle believes his side has everything it takes to make a deep finals run as the first hurdle awaits on Saturday.
For the second straight season Shepparton United’s seniors achieved a fourth-placed finish in Bendigo Amateur Soccer League and have made it to an elimination final against Eaglehawk, with which they traded one-sided results during the regular season.
Coyle acknowledges the season has had challenges, but looks forward optimistically as his charges try to go one step further than their elimination final exit in 2022.
“It’s been a hard campaign, injuries and suspensions, but that’s all part of football,” Coyle said.
“When we went away (losing 0-3 at Eaglehawk), we had people carrying knocks. I have to hold my hands up; we never travel well to Eaglehawk.
“Luckily, we’re playing on neutral ground and anything can happen.”
Coyle was clear that total cohesion among the squad is an absolute must to avenge last year’s shortcomings.
“The team is a whole lot better than last year, different players, different mentalities,’’ he said.
“For me, togetherness is key to anything.”
Should Shepp United advance, it would face a semi-final at either of the league’s two dominant sides across the past couple of seasons: Shepparton South and Tatura.
However, Coyle won’t be daunted by these challenges and believes his squad won’t be either.
“I don’t think the gaps are that big ... I think, on our day, we match them, or we could be better than them. It just hasn’t been our day,” he said.
“It’s my job to get the boys up and about for finals. I’ll tell them it’s three grand finals on the way to the title; it’s knockout football on the day.
“It’s got to be a confidence thing. You’ve got to come out believing you’ve put everything into it.
“I’ll have them fired up and ready to go to war.”