It was a bit of a roller coaster ride for Blueys fans in 2016. Early leaders of the ladder after a flying start to the season, they finished just out of the Finals in sixth spot. They ended the campaign with two thumping wins against the bottom two sides, but that followed a run of six consecutive defeats. Coach Peter Willis will be looking for greater consistency across the 22 Rounds as he goes into his second season at the helm. And he’ll be wanting to make the most of home advantage in 2017 after a season which saw the Blueys much happier on their travels, and losing seven times at Tarrawanna Oval.

Players to watch

Peter Willis has rung the changes in his Blueys squad during the close season, but two Tarrawanna stalwarts remain in Rick Goodchild and Darren Stone. They were top scorers for the Blueys in 2016 with 19 goals between them, and these two create as many as they score so are dangerous across the park.

Sam Rose has come in from Wollongong Wolves and Caleb Russell from Woonona (the Sharks’ top scorer in 2016). But I’m most interested to see how Jared Fish and Matt Naylor fit in at Tarrawanna after moving down the road from Bulli. Jared Fish notched nine goals for Bulli’s Youth Grade in 2016 and a couple more for First Grade, while Naylor has been a mainstay for Bulli for the last three seasons.

Woo Oh is an overseas signing from Konan Univeristy in Japan. He has only had a brief appearance after having some clearance delays.

There is a change between the sticks for the Blueys with former Shell Cove FC shot-stopper Adam Rodriguez joining the club.

Season expectation

After a flying start in 2016, the final position of sixth was disappointing for many, though one place higher than the Blueys achieved in 2015. Another major shuffling of the pack might spur Tarrawanna on to inch higher into the Finals, but I fear this may be a season of consolidation for the Blueys and I have them down to finish 8^th in the ladder this time round.