Cats ready to pounce in 2010

The Cats AFL team is set to take to the field for their opening clash of the 2010 season against the Australian Defence Force Academy (ADFA) in Canberra this Saturday (10 April).
Club President Dave Paterson said the Cats were bursting with enthusiasm after a long and hard pre-season, and the success of the recent AFL Pre-Season Cup in Cooma.
“There is a real vibe around the Club this season and the boys can’t wait to get onto the field against ADFA this Saturday,” Dave said.
“We’ve had a long pre-season and finished off our preparations well at the Pre-Season Cup,” he said.
ADFA will provide the Cats with a real test of just where they’re at in 2010.
“ADFA are a tough, young and fit side which has traditionally given us a hard day at the office. This will be a real litmus test for us right at the start of the season, but we’re keen to show them that this year we’re a team to take notice of,” Dave said.
The Cats are looking at building on their limited success of last year.
“We didn’t have a great year on the field last year, but we’re hoping for more this season,” Dave said.
“The biggest lesson we’re bringing with us this year is the need to play four quarters of consistent footy.,” he said. “If we can do that, we can make a real impact on the competition.”
Two new players to watch in the Cats’ line up for 2010 are Lee Mason from Jindabyne and Mark Fitzgerald from Cooma.
“This is the first year for both these blokes and they represent what is good about the club – they come to game from the broader Snowy Mountains area and are keen to make an impact,” Dave said.
“Both these guys were standouts during the Pre-Season Cup last week,” he said.
Many of last year’s players are returning for 2010, also keen to take the Cats forward and gain greater success.
“We’re looking at some of our experienced blokes like Jimmy Russell at fullback and young Mal Paterson on the wing to take the next step and become real keys players this season,” he said.
Dave said there was a great degree of optimism around the Club this year.
“One of the key events for us this season will be taking our first ’home’ game to the Station Resort at Jindabyne on Saturday 17 April - this is a major part of our Club philosophy of bringing AFL footy to the broader Snowy Mountains community so more and more people can enjoy our great game,” he said.
Dave said the Cats were also looking forward to seeing the installation of new lights at their training base at the Snowy Oval in Cooma.
“We’ve done a lot of hard fund-raising work to get the new lights, and with the grateful assistance of the Cooma-Monaro Shire Council and Telstra they should be up in the next few weeks.
“This will improve our ability to train as winter sets in, and help us better prepare for game day,” he said.
Dave said as part of the Cats’ efforts to bring AFL football to the Snowy Mountains community, the Club was again supporting their junior side - the Snowy Super Cats - in the Under 14 competition in Canberra.
“Our juniors in their first season last year finished strongly with a number of wins and we’re hoping they can continue from where they left off this season,” Dave said.
“Through the Snowy Super Cats we’re giving young boys and girls of the Snowy Mountains the chance to play Australia’s Number One football code,” Dave said.
Like any community-based footy club, the Cats rely on the support of their local sponsors to get on the field each week.
“We’ve got some great support from local businesses this year, namely Dodds Hotel, Capital Pizza, Cooma’s Orginal Hot Bake, the Nimitabel Butchery, Telstra and Woolworths,” Dave said.