Essendon Mazda Coach’s Comment: Battiato set to test squad depth
With a few injuries popping up Senior Women’s Coach Vince Battiato has been lighting a fire in the belly of his trigger-happy Reserves to fill any vacancies and prove their value to the firsts.
The Royals take on Craigieburn City FC this Friday at Cross Keys Reserve. With a high-flying Reserves squad keeping the pressure on the starting Senior XI, Battiato said there could be some opportunities for his top-of-the-table Reserves in the coming weeks.
“We have an outstanding group right across the Reserves, and I’ve spent the last two weeks pulling aside some of them to say I’m expecting you to play firsts at some point this season,” he said.
“They know who they need to displace, but most of all, they know that they must keep playing as good as they have been so that they are ready when that opportunity comes.
“We’ve picked up a few injuries so we have a few selection issues to decide on ahead of Friday night and some spots up for grabs which could mean some of those players see serious minutes.”
Whilst Battiato is delighted with the depth he has in his squad; he said any changes resulting from injuries should not be confused for complacency on Friday night.
“We expect a tough test against Craigieburn City,” he said.
“These games are tough. I know Craigieburn and their coach quite well and I know they’re a very young team with a number of players doing VCE this year and a core of 19/20-year-olds who are being exposed to this level for the first time.
“They took a well-earned point from La Trobe University and whilst they might be one of these teams that is too good for State League 2 and struggling in State League 1, they are still a team that can hurt you.
“The message to the ladies is that there are simply no easy games in this league, and as soon as you start to expect an easy game, that’s when you run into trouble.
“We respect every team but we fear no one and I’m not interested in where teams are sitting on the table. We look at their results and we look at where we can expose our strengths, but we always respect our opponents.”