HE has assembled his first grade squad for 2019 and they have been training hard, but now it is time for Western NSW Mariners coach Mark Rooke to see them in action.
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This Saturday the Mariners play their first official pre-season trial when they come up against Wagga City Wanderers in Young.
It will be the first chance for Rooke, who has previously coached junior Mariners teams, to see how his 2019 squad is travelling.
Thus far he is optimistic that he has a playing group that can be competitive in the tough NSW National Premier Leagues 3 competition.
“First grade numbers have been fantastic, I’ve really been happy with the numbers we’ve had there, the commitment they've shown – the enthusiasm has been great, I can’t ask for anything more,” he said.
“There’s a few returning faces, which is good to see, no-one sort of new as such, but I’ve still got the people I need.”
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While a transfer window will open on May 19 which may see the Mariners recruit some new talent, at this stage Rooke feels he has the depth and talent he requires.
“I could pick any single one of them to play first grade on any given day, it’s what I need,” he said.
“I wanted at the start to hopefully have a squad of 20 and hopefully have two people for every position and looking across the board, I’ve pretty much got that.
“Hopefully we don’t have too many suspensions and injuries and the likes, which certainly can make a season difficult at times.
“But I do think we have the numbers to cope with that, which is fantastic.”
As the Mariners continue to build towards their season opener on March 9, Rooke is interested to see how his players will cope in a game situation against Wagga City Wanderers.
Last season Wagga competed in the State League, a competition which sits a tier below the NSW National Premier Leagues 3 which the Mariners were a part of.
They posted just two wins and two draws in what was a tough campaign.
However, Rooke believes that in 2019 the Wagga squad could be stronger given the club has made the switch from Football NSW to Capital Football to compete in its National Premier Leagues 2 competition.
The Wanderers have already played two trial games, posting a 3-all draw against Myrtleford Savoy and downing South Wagga 4-0.
For Rooke’s Mariners, this Saturday’s match will be their first official trial. It is one he hopes – and wants – to win.
He knows success in any form will help the confidence of his squad.
“It’s about just seeing where everyone fits, how they fit and how they can play besides where they naturally play,” he said.
“I’m of a person where I say that it’s about fitness, and it is about that, but winning games is a good thing and it certainly helps build momentum.
“So I am certainly going into it looking to win the game, the outcome at this stage is not too vital, but yes, it would be nice to win.
“From where we’ve come in pre-season we’ve come along nicely and we’re starting to move on some bad habits which I think they had. We want to move on to good habits, get away from bad habits, and winning habits isn’t something they’ve had.
“Trying to regain that is the starting point this weekend.”
The first grade match on Saturday will kick-off 4pm, following under 20s (2pm) and under 18s (noon) trials.
