By RUSSELL BENNETT
FROM not having an under-18s side at all in 2014, to blooding seven players from the thirds grade this year in the senior side – Catani is on the up and the proof lies in its youngsters.
In the Blues final game of the season – a 107-point defeat of Poowong at Taplins Road in Round 17, 21.16 (142) to 5.5 (35) – senior coach Paul Alger selected Tom Mclean as the seventh under-18s player to play in the firsts this year.
Four of them were selected against the Magpies – Nathan Lineham, Joel Benson, Wade Haysom and Mclean.
Lineham and Benson both have another year of eligibility in the thirds next year, too.
Mclean, who is also a prodigiously talented gridiron player involved with the Pakenham Silverbacks, has some great size about him for a youngster his age and he deserved his spot in Catani’s senior side against Poowong.
Now the key for the Blues is making sure their promising youngsters stay at the club.
“We want all our kids to stay,” Alger said.
“We’ve come from a long way back with no thirds and no-one to draw from last year.
“That’s when you’re in trouble. Last year, some blokes had to play reserves and then seniors straight after, and a lot of clubs around are in a similar position.
“But it doesn’t take long to turn things around.
“You can do it fairly quickly, but what you have to do is show you’re improving so people will want to come.
“We’ve found it tough this year in trying to recruit players because we only won one game last year. If people see improvement, they’ll come.”
And that improvement has been there for all to see this year. After winning just the one game and finishing with a percentage of 48.41 last season, the Blues improved to five wins this season with a much healthier percentage of 84.52.
With the likes of Lineham, Benson, Haysom and Mclean around – as well as other 2015 under-18 graduates Hayden Lownds, James Williams and Riley Miller – that improvement should continue again in season 2016.
