INTERNATIONAL will hope to maintain its undefeated status when it takes to the Gambier Centrals pitch on Sunday to face Apollo in the Limestone Coast Football Association grand final.
Having taken out the Belgiorno Cup earlier in the year in a tough match against Apollo, Inter will now have it’s eyes set on the premiership title.
After missing out on playing the big game last year, Inter’s undefeated run in 2017 is a reflection of the club’s strength and coach Tony D’Agostino said looking back it “feels a bit surreal”.
“It was a hard season with a few draws and it wasn’t that easy,” he said.
“Now you look back and it was a fairly good achievement, especially with the quality of the opposition teams.”
Even though it was close and D’Agostino said it could have gone either way, the victory over Apollo in the qualifying final will fill Inter with some confidence going into Sunday’s game.
“To know we have been able to beat them a couple of times and they haven’t beaten us this year, we’ll go in with a little bit of confidence behind us,” he said.
Inter’s near-perfect season has not been without its challenges, as there has been several players who have been unavailable at various times throughout the year.
“We’ve had players that we’ve had to manage, with Matthew Bueti being out for a length of time and Tobbei Kennett being injured for a long part of the season,” D’Agostino said.
“Along with Dan Bronca being unavailable for a fair bit, it just unsettles the team.
“We probably haven’t been able to play our best 11 all the way through.”
However, D’Agostino said this has been somewhat beneficial, especially at this time of the year, as he knows there are plenty of players who can play in a variety of roles.
Inter appears to be at full-strength for the weekend and will fight hard in what is sure to be a highly contested match between the league’s heavyweights.
“We have all the players available and hopefully we can put our best team on the field,” D’Agostino said.
“This time of year you want all your players to be standing up and performing well.”
In terms of who he believes will provide valuable presences on the field, D’Agostino said he will be relying on players in all positions to lift their game to the high standard needed to win a grand final.
“I’m hoping that Matthew Bueti has a very good day and can put a few away,” he said.
“But the reality is, I rely just as much on Ricky McRobert and Nick Morony in the back line.
“I know they are going to be under pressure from Apollo.
“It’s hard to say one spot, but if my midfield can get over the top of their midfield, I think it will be a very crucial part of the game.”
