New Rockbank coach Gavin Sporle doesn’t want his team to be a one-finals wonder.
The Rams finished sixth on the Riddell District Football League ladder last year and played finals for the first time in 13 years.
Only two years earlier, the club was anchored to the bottom of the competition ladder.
But with a long history of involvement in the RDFL, Sporle has seen a number of clubs finish sixth and then be unable to take the next step the following year.
“You play football to be a finals football team,” he said.
“That’s the goal. We made finals last season, which was a fantastic result.
“So many sides have slotted into that sixth spot in the RDFL finals in recent years but just haven’t been able to crack that top four or five. That’s obviously the goal for our football club now.
“We have finished sixth and we really need to make the moves to push ourselves into that top-four bracket and become really competitive with the top sides in the competition.”
Sporle has hit the ground running after being appointed to the top job at Rockbank in early September.
He was an assistant coach at the Rams the previous two seasons and knows exactly what the club needs to take the next step.
“I think the list we have is very strong and has certainly got the capability of going to the next level,” he said.
“No matter where you sit you always need to bring other recruits into the environment.
“Having been around the club for a couple of years now and having a look at what was done last year, recruiting-wise, we’re really targeting key position defenders and ruckmen.
“That’s what we’ve been looking at so far in the group of players we’ve been speaking to.”
Sporle said he and his coaching panel were also excited by the young talent already on hand.
The club is coming off a finals appearance by the under-18s and is hoping a number of those players will take the next step into senior football.
Sporle believes the combination of strong young players and making the most of Rockbank’s position in a growth corridor could set the club up long term.
“It’s easy for us to sit back and say, we’re in the middle of a growth area and eventually that will take off, and we will take off.
“But I want to make it a strong club prior to the growth area taking off because the reality is, the footy club can become very strong within the RDFL over the next three to five years.”
Rockbank will begin preseason training next month.
