Focus: Tallygaroopna centre Claudia Callagher during the preliminary final.
Photo by
Aydin Payne
Tallygaroopna’s A-grade side will look to lean on those with previous grand final experience this weekend, according to vice-captain Bree Giles.
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The Redlegs are days away from hitting the court in Saturday’s Kyabram District League A-grade decider to take on Dookie United.
Giles, who has featured in five grand finals, has been a mainstay in defence and a star for the Redlegs for more than two decades.
The 2008 A-grade premiership player understands that the intensity and pressure go up a notch in the big dance.
“Grand finals are a next-level sort of game,” Giles said.
“We’ve been lucky enough to play a lot of grand finals, including one in over time, so I think definitely some experience helps out there.
“Just keeping things calm when the momentum can shift and sometimes you need to talk to the team to get back into it.
“Having a mix of older and younger heads will put us in good stead for a good match.”
Leading the way: Tallygaroopna defender Bree Giles in action last week.
Photo by
Aydin Payne
But not everyone in the team has grand final experience.
A-grade captain Claudia Callagher is playing in her first senior grand final.
Callagher, a fast and skilful midcourter who came runner-up in last year’s Warren Family Medal, is an integral team member.
“It will be (my first senior grand final),’’ she said.
“I’ve played in lots of prelims and lost a lot so I’m really excited to make the grand final.
“I’m relatively new to the club compared to the rest of the girls.
“It’s really good we have got a nice tight bunch who have played together, they’ve got a lot of experience they can draw on and as Bree said we’ve got some fresh faces ... it’s going to be pretty special.”
Although there is a contrast in grand final experience between the captain and vice-captain, there are a lot of similarities when they speak about Tallygaroopna.
Giles, who has more than half-a-dozen A-grade best-and-fairest accolades, has been involved at the club since the early 2000s.
“This is my 21st year and I keep coming back because it’s such a great environment and such a great family club,” Giles said.
“It’s a great club and it’s always been a great club.”
Callagher, who claimed her own best-and-fairest honour, joined the club in 2019 from Anglesea and has never looked back since.
“It’s a good family club, everyone is really welcoming, it’s a good community vibe and I love playing here,” she said.
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