James Murphy
THERE was plenty of buzz around the Mount Burr camp over the off-season, with the signing of Clint Gallio as head coach.
Gallio returns to the Mozzies after a lengthy stint at Millicent in the Western Border Football League and brings with him an extra four premierships worth of coaching experience.
Aside from Gallio’s recruitment and a few other handy pickups, there has been limited traffic in or our of the Mount Burr camp.
As such the club will have its sights set on an improve from last season, where it narrowly missed out on finals for a fifth-place finish.
Gallio said preparation had been going well and he looked forward to Round 1 this Saturday against Kongorong.
“I feel like we have had a decent enough pre-season,” he said.
“The senior squad and Senior Colts have been working hard since before Christmas.
“We are learning some new stuff with new game plays and new game style and I think everyone has adapted quite well.”
Gallio said the squad was fit and raring to go and he felt he had slotted back in quite well.
“There are a few players still playing that I played with before I left and then there’s some new kids coming through,” he said.
“We have healthy numbers and I am excited to be back.
“2016 was my last game here and we won a grand final, so I have pretty good memories here.
“It was obviously a hard decision (to leave Millicent), but it has been an easy transition once it all happened.”
Gallio gears up as a playing coach and his experience will be just as valuable on field, while Jake Whitty and Taylor Redden have also joined the fold.
Former coach Reece Duncan is a departure of note, as he ventures across to coach Glencoe, while the bulk of the list remains the same as last year.
“We have some new kids coming in and they will play various roles at different stages,” Gallio said.
“I think we have a pretty good core group and there is plenty of experience – we have a couple of blokes who have won multiple flags.”
Gallio said he was familiar with most of his team, but was eager to see it in action this weekend.
“I have seen most people play – there are a few young kids who I haven’t, so I am looking forward to seeing how they go,” he said.
“Also I think Jack Gregory – he has had a ripper pre-season and is dedicated as ever – I am really looking forward to seeing him on Saturday.”
Gregory topped the league goal kicking in 2023 and will be out to impress again this campaign.
In all it has been a successful off-season and the Mozzies will be eager to hit the ground running against the Hawks.
“I think we have given ourselves the best opportunity to compete with all teams,” Gallio said.
“Obviously I am a new coach coming in, so it might take a few weeks or it might even be the back half of the season before we really get going, but we are hopeful we will improve on last year.
“Our aim straight up is to make finals and that is what we will stick with.
“We are looking forward to working hard to do that.”
