Border Mail | Wodonga Saints know all about being stuck in the league wilderness — they’ve been there for years.
The sick and sorry Saints have had just 13 wins since 2009 and last weekend endured a 300-point thrashing at the hands of Tallangatta.
Coach Scott Montgomery is the first to say any rebuilding of the club will take years.
And, not surprisingly, his focus since moving to the club from his assistant coaching spot at Dederang-Mount Beauty is on youth.
He hopes to build a core group of young players to lift the club out of the mire, starting from the thirds up.
“Playing against a quality side like Tallangatta was an uphill battle, especially with a few players missing,” Montgomery said.
“All we can do is to develop the structures and style of play we want to use.”
He said hot competition on the Border for players made the youth focus essential.
“We had a really high turn-over of players after last season — we might have had only eight to 10 regular senior players still at the club,” Montgomery said.
“And we missed out on a few recruits we wanted.
“With the Bulldogs, Raiders, Tigers and Panthers close by and teams like Kiewa(-Sandy Creek) not too far down the road, it’s hard to lure the big names we might like.
“Our depth has been gutted, there’s no doubt about that.”
But forget the on-field negatives, Montgomery is all about making the Saints appealing to recruits and retaining their clubs young players.
“The Saints are a great club off the field and that’s one of the reasons I came across,” he said.
“We’re a relatively young club (having moved from Bethanga in 2001), so we’re still developing the supporter base the Beechworths and Mittas have.
“A great core group of people support the club week in, week out, no matter what.”
Montgomery said there was belief in the team, despite the hidings and “everyone who turns up wants to improve”.
“We are giving as many kids as we can senior opportunities to learn what it takes to play and be successful at this level,” he said.
“If we can establish a core group, there is definitely a path to success.
“One win could establish a bit of confidence, bit of extra motivation.
“For now, we’ll continue working on our game plan.”
