United again: Farran Priest has returned to the Eagles’ nest after an injury-interrupted season with Elmore.
Photo by
Cath Grey
Twenty-eight years after the union of Echuca East and Echuca South football clubs, to form Echuca United, the club is looking for a little bit of history repeating to improve on its 2021 season finish.
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This season holds a lot of hope as it attempts to improve on its one win from the 13 completed rounds of the season last year.
While the club won only three of its 26 senior football matches, seniors and reserves, it finished with eight wins and in fifth position in the under-17 competition.
This year, having had several of its under-age players compete at senior level, the club is poised to surprise the other 11 clubs — on the back of its teenage playing personnel having significant senior exposure in 2021.
Echuca United director of football Todd Ramage said in previously successful periods of the club’d history it had relied on “home-grown talent” to influence its status in the competition.
That will be the case again as a favourite son of the club, Farran Priest, returns as coach.
He was a winner of the club’s best-and-fairest in its only premiership since formation.
While United finished bottom of the ladder in 2021, a recent focus on developing its juniors and bringing young footballers through to senior level is expected to pay dividends in 2022.
“We focused on that last year. At one stage last year we had 25 kids under 22 years of age playing throughout the seniors and reserves,” Ramage said.
Emerging Eagle: Teenage ruckman Darcy Ramage is among several Eagles who have come through the club’s junior ranks and are now playing senior football.
Photo by
Steve Huntley
Oliver Poole is part of the Pioneers program and is still eligible for under-17 level football.
He played six or eight games in the seniors, mainly on a wing.
Another under-17 player, Fayte Belmont-Wickliffe, is in the same situation as Poole as a teenager with half a season of senior experience.
Nineteen-year-old Darcy Ramage rucked the entire season as an 18-year-old, despite being undersized in the role. He will be better for the experience.
Jesse Garner, another teenager, kicked four goals in the club’s only win of the season.
He is an example of the club’s in-house development program, having been at the Eagles since he was 10.
“We have recruited reasonably well, there are four or five new players,” Ramage said.
“Three have come from Elmore, which is where Farran briefly played last year.”
Priest played only four games before an ACL injury ended his season.
“If we are pushing toward finals that would be a good thing,” Ramage said.
