Trevor Jackson
Jake Dowdy
Hatherleigh missed out on a grand final berth in 2021, bundled out of the running by Kalangadoo in the preliminary final.
This year the Eagles made sure they reached the big dance, defeating the Magpies in the second semi-final to claim the first grand final berth.
For coach Jake Dowdy, the 2021 result was still on the mind until this year’s semi-final result.
He said that result has given his side plenty of confidence.
“Kalangadoo were the ones who knocked us out last year,” Dowdy said.
“In just one quarter of football they turned it on and finished us, so to be able to beat them and go straight in has given us a world of confidence.
“We knew what our football is capable of, but doing it in a final is a good head start I think.”
Dowdy said to win the flag would simply take a lot of hard work and focus for the full four quarters.
“You have to be unbelievably accountable – you can’t let them run loose because they have so many good ball users,” he said.
“They are a pretty tough physical side as well so we need to match that.
“Out of everything, we have to worry about them, but have to play our game.
“We have to stop certain players but at the same time, if we don’t play our game we are not going to score.
“We need everyone on board, no passengers and play our game.
“I am confidence enough if we do that we can come away with a win.”
Dowdy expected several other factors to come into play, including fitness and a good spread of scorers.
He said the versatility of his side could also play a major role.
“Our weapon is probably that we are very versatile,” Dowdy said.
“If you shut one of our good players down we have another three or four who can do the same thing.
“That makes us hard to match up on.
“In the end we just need everyone up and about and playing our game and it is game on.”
