Magpies retain confidence heading into the late 2010s
Maryborough suffered through some lean seasons leading up to the Covid-affected years of 2020-2021, but there was still optimism at Princes Park.
In their submission to the BFNL’s printed 2015 annual report the Magpies retained great hope for the years to come.
President Terry Hillier informed the BFNL and footy followers in general that although club legend Jamie Bond had retired as coach the Pies were confident incoming coach Shane Skontra would be more than an adequate replacement.
“He’s a genuine, charismatic family man with tremendous credentials who has coached inter-league footy in both the Central Highlands and Ballarat leagues and won the premiership with Waubra,” Mr Hillier informed the board.
“We know he has a daunting task re-building our community club and in re-establishing high standards on-and-off the field,” the president commented.
“Shane has to move our player group from genuine improvers in 2016 to genuine contenders by 2017.”
It was an enormous task facing Skontra.
Maryborough had finished winless in the BFNL cellar in 2015 and recorded the same figures in Skontra’s first year: 2016.
But by 2019 Maryborough finished sixth with a 6 win-12 loss record yet still a fair way out of the Final Five.
By comparison the A grade netballers, coached by Jordan McIlwain, had fallen just short of the 2015 finals with Alicia Cassidy winning the club fairest and best award.
In footy the 2015 senior winner was Coby Perry.
Maryborough celebrated two important milestones in that 2015 season. They celebrated their 135th consecutive year as a functioning club and 50 years since their 1965 Ballarat F.L. premiership.
The big dinner was held at the Carisbrook trotting complex main building with Melissa Adams the chief organiser.
And as president Hillier emphasised, without a significant sponsorship base, no footy clubs could continue on.
“We need every sponsor to ensure the success of the club, we need you – the supporters and parents – to commit to our next three-year cycle and of course we need people to volunteer.”
So how did the seasons under Skontra work out?
Well, they were still winless in 2016 but by 2019 the Pies managed a 6 win-12 loss season to finish sixth but a fair distance away from a finals berth.
Nevertheless Maryborough ended 2019 higher on the ladder than both South Bendigo and Kyneton.
But going back to 2015, the Tigers had made their first BFNL finals campaign in 12 seasons.
They finished with an 8 win-10 loss record, above both Gisborne and South Bendigo, but went down to Eaglehawk in the elimination final: 12.17 (89) to the Tigers 9.9 (63).
But before the finals got underway there’d been some late season drama at the Kyneton Showgrounds.
Senior coach Mark Adamson had run the show until late in the year until the Kyneton committee replaced him with Luke Beattie.
Tigers’ president Rob Waters said it had been “a difficult decision as Mark had made a very significant contribution in two-and-a-bit years as senior coach, but still Luke quickly adjusted to his new role.”
Mr Waters added Beattie would be Kyneton’s senior coach for the next two years following the sacking of Adamson.
And off the field there was one very significant improvement.
The new electronic scoreboard had been installed and Mr Waters said it had been welcomed by sponsors, supporters and players.
The new lights were expected to be installed and going full blaze for the 2016 season.
Fairest and best club winners were Rhys Magin (senior football) and Emma Webb in A grade netball.
That season, 2015, also saw the Tigers’ women’s team founded. They eventually joined the Riddell District FNL, just as their juniors had done, to be followed by the Tigers’ senior outfits in 2024.
Castlemaine’s senior footballers, under the guidance of coach Shane Robertson, won double the number of games in 2015 compared with a season earlier: in 2014.
The Camp Reserve Pies were still in with a finals chance right up to the final round.
In the end they finished 2015 off with a 6 win-12 loss record to end up seventh.
The Maine retained a hold on seventh spot in 2016, winning seven games and losing 11, but by 2017 had dropped dramatically to finish on 2-16 and end up in ninth spot: second last.
President Ian Bracken said in his 2015 annual report the club had “won double the number of games from the previous season and were a chance for a finals spot right up to the last round.”
On the netball front Mr Bracken said the club’s focus remained strongly on the club’s development squad and the under-17s to provide senior level opportunities for the junior girls.
Fairest and best winners in footy and A grade netball were Justin Dorward and Georgia Wills.
For Gisborne president Colin Rodgers mentioned the Dogs had welcomed a number of new players to the club in 2015.
And he was also proud of the improvements made to Gardiner Reserve.
“This year we’ve seen the greatest improvements to the club’s home ground --- Gardiner Reserve --- for more than 30 years.
“We’ve had new netball courts installed, netball and football light towers erected and an electronic scoreboard put in place,” he said.
The Bulldogs also initiated a number of key off-field social responsibility programmes.
“These included forums to educate players on the issues of (the drug) ‘ice’ along with domestic violence and we were proud to stage ‘Pink Ladies Day’ at which 180 local women attended for a very successful fund-raising lunch,” Mr Rodgers noted.
Gisborne had finished sixth in senior footy in 2015 posting a 6 win-12 loss record, the same as Castlemaine, but with a better percentage: 82.66% compared to the Maine’s 81.07%.
It wasn’t until 2018 that the Graveyard Dogs made the BFNL finals again, finishing fifth on an 11-7 record.
Fairest and best winners for Gisborne in 2015 were Ben Sonogan (footy) and Tiana Newman (netball).
And to round off this remembrance of the 2015 season it’s timely to remember that Eaglehawk’s Brodie Filo won the Michelsen Medal with Sandhurst’s Heather Oliver the convincing winner of the Betty Thompson Medal.
Eaglehawk’s Matt ‘G-Train’ Gretgrix won the Ron Best Medal with 82 majors, followed by Ben Weightman (Kyneton) on 73.
Making up the Top Five were Corey Jones (GS) with 60, while Matthew Knox (Gis) and Mitchell Scholard (Kyn) were tied on 55 majors.
Nalder Medallist for best-on-ground in the 2015 grand final was awarded to Matt Smith (Strath Storm).
Off-field Carol Cathcart had taken over as BFNL manager following the departure of Justin Abrams while Greg Bickley had resigned from the board of management.
The BFNL board was headed up by long-time chair Dr. Carol McKinistry with members Paul Byrne, Andrew Jakubans, Beres Fitch, Melissa Ryan, Barry Secombe and Ron Cawthan.
