By JARROD POTTER
DANDENONG STINGRAYS PREVIEW
TAC CUP – ROUND 8
COMING off the win of the TAC Cup season – with a clinical display to knock aside Eastern Ranges by 21 points – Dandenong will gain a few new faces this week against the Western Jets.
Losing at home is never ideal and Dandenong was especially displeased to cough up a loss to NSW/ACT two Saturdays ago.
Stingrays coach Craig Black hopes to continue their strong form in 2015 and negate Western’s winning ways from last season.
“We were probably disappointed as a group to lose at home – in the last six years we haven’t lost more than five or six games at home and the Jets beat us twice there,” Black said.
“Not taking it lightly – even with ladder position.
“It will be a good one-on-one contest and as a coaching group we’re hoping they can keep the consistency up.”
The Stingrays faithful will get their first glimpse of Beaconsfield/Hallam SC product Jordan Stewart as the prodigious SEFNL rising star earns his TAC Cup debut.
Getting to don number 23, Stewart secured his spot ironically as the 23rd man after featuring in the Eagles’ best three weeks in a row.
His efforts include a best-on-ground performance against Cranbourne on the weekend – so Dandenong decided to roll the dice and give another 17-year-old from Beaconsfield a chance to shine.
“Jordy will come into our squad as a 23rd man to get a bit of exposure,” Black said.
“Practice game form was really good and he’s playing senior footy at Beacy under Boofa (Clint Evans) down there.
“We’ve had some pretty good 17 year olds to come out of there in the last year, Tommy Glenn, Tom Jok, Brandon White, so we thought we’d give him an opportunity.”
Black expects Stewart to develop as a roaming half-back who can push onto the wing and hopefully show a few signs of the future as he pushes for his own spot in the line-up.
Also to debut will be Phillip Raso – Devon Meadows product – who is also a team-mate of Stewart’s at Hallam Senior College.
The return of ruckman Gach Nyuon will allow Dandenong to power-pack its forward line as utility Harry Prior and Travis Young will roam from the forward arc alongside James Freeman.
The outs for Dandenong include Josh Battle and Keiran Collins (school football) while Daniel Capiron will line up for the Frankston Dolphins as their 23rd man.
Jayden Bubb and Lachie Batten round out the outs, with the duo expected to be back in a week and a month respectively.
Dandenong Stingrays will host Western Jets from 11.30am on Saturday at Shepley Oval.
DANDENONG STINGRAYS TEAM LIST
B: Glen, J. Rouse, Stoffels.
HB: Poholke, White, Rice.
C: Williams, Lovett, Pickess.
HF: Prior, Freeman, Warke.
F: Mutimer, Young, Roscoe.
R: Nyuon, Cox, Di Pasquale.
Int (Selected from): Turnbull, McKay, DeWit, Gladman, Raso, Kiely, La Fontaine, Stewart*.
