Last season it was about surviving in the Victorian Premier League 2 competition for Whittlesea United, this year is about having an impact.
Playing at the VPL level last season was a massive learning curve for Whittlesea having never played that high before.
Now with a deeper squad, a new coach and understanding of what is needed, Whittlesea is keen to make inroads.
Whittlesea’s Nabi Tuna said they were really excited for the season ahead.
“We’ve been able to appoint Ivan Franjic as coach which is a major stepping stone,” he said.
“It’s been a successful off season so far and we’ve got some good recruits and we’re in a good place three weeks before the season.”
The signing of Franjic is a big one for Whittlesea.
The former Australian player had coached Melbourne Knights before departing the club early last year after finishing his playing professional playing career which took him all over the world.
“We took a bit of time to convince him to come on board,” Tuna said.
“We spoke about what we have to offer and our aspirations to go up.
“He wanted to give coaching a crack and he was happy to take it on.”
Whittlesea had a focus of adding more depth to the squad in the off season.
Among that was some experience.
Former St Albans captain Michael Grgic and Atay Ibrahim are two that look to fill that void and provide something on the pitch.
“Atay is a local Turkish boy,” he said. “Atay was a leader at Brunswick.
“We’ve got three players coming from England which is super exciting.
“Michael will be huge in the leadership component and add to what we already have.
“They bring in experience which we lacked a little bit last year. Those cool calm heads.”
Kieran Glynn, Kieran Hoşgeldin, Hussain Al Sharifi, Patrick Cristea, Callum King-Harmes, Ali Turgut and Umut Bozdugan are among other new signings for Whittlesea United.
Tuna said they were keen to see what some of their younger players, who had break out seasons last year, could do.
He said after injuries left then thin last year they wanted to bring in a bigger squad.
Whittlesea United gets its season underway on 14 February against Goulburn Valley Suns.
“With the way the league is set up the top six go into play offs,” he said.
“On our day we will be hard to beat. We want to get into the top six and see what happens.”
Meanwhile, Hume City will kick off its season on 13 February against Altona Magic.
