Demons Cast Spell Over Wimmera League
The Age
Saturday June 10, 2006
THE return of former Richmond defender Scott Turner to his home-town club has injected life into the Wimmera Football League. Before last week's round, in which Turner kicked six goals in his first game for Ararat in 15 years, Wimmera fans would have been forgiven for losing interest.
Horsham Demons dominate to such an extent that country football followers are wondering whether the Demons should move into a stronger competition, such as the Ballarat league. After winning the past three premierships, the Demons this year are undefeated and have an average winning margin of 99 points.Horsham Diggers, the Demons' co-tenant at the Horsham City Oval, have come closest to the Demons with a 74-point loss. Second-placed Dimboola lost by 90 points. While Dimboola has a healthy percentage of 176, due largely to its impressive band of recruits from Darwin, all teams below Dimboola have percentages of less than 100.The key to Horsham Demons' dominance is strong administration and an emphasis on junior development. Being the oldest and strongest club in the biggest city in the region, they have a distinct advantage. Since falling over and almost dying a decade ago, the Demons have utilised that advantage. Horsham, which is 300 kilometres from Melbourne, has a population of 14,000, far more than outlying towns. In theory, the three clubs from Horsham have an edge over clubs from smaller towns, especially Nhill, which is 75 kilometres along the Western Highway and unable to draw players to match its rivals.Horsham Saints, until recently known as St Michael's Football Club, always have been in finals consideration since stepping up from the Horsham and District league in 1993, but this year find themselves at the bottom of the ladder.The loss of key players to district-league clubs such as Harrow-Balmoral has denuded the Saints of talent.The Diggers, until recently known as Horsham United, have lost key players to North Central league club Donald. Nonetheless, they should be able to mount a strong challenge for the finals.The Diggers' main rivals for the finals appear to be Warrack Eagles, a recent merger of the Warracknabeal and Brim football clubs, and Minyip-Murtoa, which won three consecutive premierships after Minyip and Murtoa merged in 1995.Eagles coach Marc Greig, a forward with North Ballarat for several years, lives in Ballarat. His assistants take training on Tuesday evenings but he drives more than 200 kilometres to take training on Thursdays.Minyip-Murtoa pair Clint Midgley, a fast-leading full-forward, and midfielder John Kosch are among the competition's best players after returning this season to their home town club.Kosch drives from Melbourne every weekend.The league's southern-most clubs, Ararat and Stawell, care little about the rest of the competition. As two of football's fiercest rivals, their main concern is beating each other.The pair play tomorrow at Stawell's Central Reserve, the home of the Stawell Gift, in a match that should be suitably rugged. Stawell, a regular finalist, is performing badly, while Ararat has improved greatly after winning a rare wooden spoon last season.Former Richmond backman Scott Turner, 36, said before last weekend that he was especially looking forward to playing against Stawell. Such is the feeling engendered by a rivalry stretching back to the 1870s.- Horsham Demons until recently were known as the Horsham Football Club, which was formed in 1892.- Horsham Diggers were known as Horsham United, the name the club took when Horsham Imperials and Wonwondah, merged in 1983. The Demons and the Diggers share the Horsham City Oval.- Horsham Saints were known as the St Michael's Football Club. St Mick's, as the club was better known, was formed in 1945 by Father Frank Coughlin, whom the Saint's home ground was named after.
© 2006 The Age
