THE Swan Hill men’s soccer team are not only one win away from the perfect season, but also redemption, when the Swans meet La Trobe University in this Sunday’s Bendigo Amateur Soccer League Division 2 Super Cup grand final.
After taking all before them this season, Swan Hill will be desperate to atone in a rematch between the combatants of last year’s grand final, won by La Trobe University 4-2.
But just as La Trobe ended the Swans’ hopes of back-to-back premierships that day, Swan Hill will be looking to return the favour in their third consecutive grand final.
It’s a moment in time that has burned deep for the past 12 months, with the playing group showing a determination to right the wrongs of last year, according to men’s coach Tony Di Palma.
“There’s only one word to describe our season and that’s redemption,” Di Palma told The Guardian this week.
“We want to beat them, especially after last year, we’re out to prove a point that we were good enough to end up on the top of the ladder for a reason and I think we just have to stay positive.
“We have to win the game, there’s no ifs or buts, and if we play at our very best, I know we can.
“It means a hell of a lot for the boys, being there three years in a row and even though we won it all in 2022, losing last year was still a learning curve in not taking teams for granted.
“Last week’s game was an eye-opener too, I think it’s made us more aware that there are quality teams out there and we need to be at our best for all 90 minutes.
“We just want to win and finish off what we started, it’s great what the boys have done all season, but now we’ve got one more game to go for us to win it all.
“The boys are as excited, as the whole club are excited, to make it this far three years in a row, but hopefully we prevail and win it.
“In saying that, (La Trobe University) are going to be thinking the same thing, it’s exciting and should be a good game and our club is right behind us.”
Although it has been a season of dominance from Swan Hill, going through the home-and-away season winning every match, the team were made to work to get this far when they secured a 4-3 win over Golden City last Sunday in the dying minutes of extra time.
After trailing 2-1 in the first half, Swan Hill were able to claw their way back into the match in the second half thanks to goals to Conner Brown and Cooper Fox, with Golden City sending the game to extra time with an 87th minute equaliser.
Despite being forced to earn their place in this weekend’s grand final, their hard-fought win last Sunday could be a blessing, according to Di Palma.
“It was a tough game, but to play in a game like that and come out the other side, especially when we weren’t at our best in the first half, shows that we’re never out of the game,” Di Palma said.
“Of course we would have preferred to win a bit easier and maybe not have to play the extra half an hour either, but I think that game will actually be good for the boys’ mindset.
“It will sharpen us up a bit, which I think will be a positive when it’s all said and done.
“We’re going to have our best 11 out there and we’ll have a bench as well, but we’re still going to be missing a few guys with injuries, but we played last week with injuries and the result was good.
“We just need everyone to knuckle down a bit, play their role and do it to the best of their ability, and hopefully something good comes out of it.”
Those who Di Palma will be hoping can play their role will include his talented midfield group of Jason Stokes, Stephen Whittaker, Gareth Johansen and mid-season recruit Joseph Costa.
Youth players Marcus Orlando and Bailey Johnson have also been strong additions to the Swans’ back four alongside Harley Lahy and Anyueer Majur, with Orlando and Johnson providing cover since the loss of experienced defender Blaze Hamilton to a season-ending knee injury in June.
But it will be up front that La Trobe will be put most of their planning, with league leading goalscorer Conner Brown (28 goals) and captain Cooper Fox posing dual threats to any defence.
Having played in both the 2022 and 2023 campaigns, Fox has seen the highs and lows of the sport.
He was confident his team would save their best for when it mattered most this weekend.
“There’s definitely nerves, especially after losing last year, it’s definitely on the back of our minds, but we’re going into Sunday feeling pretty good,” Fox said.
“We’ve got 11 fit seniors and plenty of youth helping out so we’re looking pretty good from a squad perspective, it’s all about clicking together on the day now.
“We know our best is going to beat their best, so as long as we can produce that we’ll be right.
“It’ll mean the world for this group to go through undefeated.
“We’re the only team across the entire BASL seniors competition that’s undefeated this season.
“Not only that, we’ve won every game we’ve played, with no draws – that doesn’t happen very often, certainly not in soccer.”
