After a disappointing season in 2009, Waverley have added some important names to their line-up. They haven’t done a great deal to publicise it, but word got out. And as the season kicks off, we catch up with head coach Eric Minerve about his team’s chances this season.
 

Things have been moving along quietly out at Waverley Stadium this past few months despite the rumour mill churning ferociously. A second-from-the-bottom finish for the Men in 2009 saw some drastic changes in the off-season, and some big acquisitions but very few official announcements over summer.

 

The season has arrived and we wanted to pin down head coach Eric Minerve to see what we can expect from the Falcons in season 2010.

 

OT: Rumour has it that you guys will be one of the favourites heading into the new season. Fair comment?

I don’t know about that one, but we’ve definitely improved from last year.

 

OT: You’ve made some key acquisitions over the break and have done a fair bit of work in turning around your fortunes. Who are the names that will get it done for you guys this year?

We’ve got Sedalle Threatt Jnr as our starting point guard, which has brought a lot of maturity at the point spot. Also Vashon Weaver in the three spot — so two very savy players, who have played not only in these leagues but in the professional leagues as well. We’ve also got a player called Senad Dizdarevic who played with Knox in the SEABL for the past couple of years and we also picked up Latrrobe City’s Mark Goodwin who was Rhys Carter’s back-up point guard from last year. Those are the four new guys to the group. But the full nucleus of last year’s group is intact. With Simon Blennerhassett, Ivan Platenik running around again and Big Kevin Benn as well.

 

OT: Coming off a great season last year, but with a bit more talent getting around the place, how do you think Ivan Platenik will respond and fit in.

I think that the new guys will complement Ivan in that the other teams won’t be able to double as much, as they’ll need to worry about the other three or four guys defensively. I think we’ll find that Ivan will become more effective.

 

OT: What position on the floor do you think you’ll cause the most headaches for opposing teams?

I think definitely in the point spot — I don’t think there are too many guards in the league who are as quick or as talented as Sedale in the point spot. Again in the four spot, with Ivan is going to be very, very tough.

But it’s not just in the one or two spots though: it’s a depth thing. We’ve got eight or nine really solid players and we want to utilize that depth against teams that don’t necessarily have that.

 

OT: With someone like Sedale, it’s pretty hard not to be an up and down kind of team. With the new acquisitions, have you been forced to change your philosophies at all?

Not really. We’ve recruited guys that wanted to play our brand and our style of play and the guys that we brought in have taken on our approach and are all happy with the way we’re approaching it.

 

OT: Who do you think are going to be the tough teams?

Ringwood will be tough, Diamond Valley will be tough and Hume will be tough