Deni Rovers reappoint Alex Hay as senior coach

His first year consisted of only one practice match against the Hay Lions.

‘‘Although we didn’t officially keep score in the game against Hay, we would have came out on top, so I said to Plough (Rovers president John Glowrey) that he has to keep me on board with my 100 per cent win rate as coach,’’ Hay said with a laugh.

‘‘Obviously it was disappointing we couldn’t get started properly, but what I saw early with our training and preparation for the season gave me plenty of optimism.

‘‘Hopefully we can emulate what we did in the build up to the 2020 season. That should put us in a good position for next year.

‘‘The time off has actually been good for some of our older players to rest up, so they can take on next year at full strength.

‘‘I already have a lot of players chomping at the bit and asking when we’re starting training again, so the motivation is there.’’

The Rovers exceeded expectations in the 2019 season, making their way to a preliminary final despite finishing sixth on the ladder.

It was a season that saw them finally break their finals drought, scoring their second post-season win in 25 years and their first since 2008.

Hay said with the monkey now off the back of the club, his side was in a good position to build towards its first piece of silverware.

‘‘We’re going to tackle it like a normal season,’’ he said.

‘‘We’ll probably look to start about mid-November.

‘‘When we finished up earlier this year I had a fairly motivated group and everyone has already recommitted, which has made my life a lot easier.

‘‘The most positive thing was that a high expectation was set not just by me, but the playing group themselves as to what needs to be done.

‘‘I’ll stick by what I had planned this year and that is if you’re not going to put the work in you will not be picked to play.

‘‘We have been conscious of keeping the playing list local to ensure that everyone can be at every training session, unless there are circumstances out of their control.’’