WITH less than two weeks until the new Hampden Football Netball League season gets underway, Koroit senior coach, Chris McLaren, said his team was set for yet another big year, as the club defends its 2021 Minor Premiership after the season was cut short due to COVID.

The Saints go into the 2022 campaign as the only team to win a HFNL senior premiership since Warrnambool won in 2013.

The Hamilton Kangaroos will get the first look at the Saints, making the trek down to Victoria Park in round one and McLaren said his team was primed for what he expected would be a tough contest against the blue and white.

“Talking to Guy and Lachy throughout the year and I am really seeing things with Hamilton that I am thinking I reckon they are right and ready to play finals type footy,” McLaren said.

“I was really impressed when we played them last year.

“I have seen they have picked up a few and Hamilton really tested us and pushed us last year in one of the harder contests we had during the game.

“I rate Hamish (Waldron) really highly and we will be expecting a good hard game.”

The Saints are the benchmark of the competition over the past decade, collecting the minor premiership in 2021 after the shortened season and go into the new season as premiership favourites with North Warrnambool and South Warrnambool the other likely contenders.

McLaren said the hope offered by the likelihood of a full season and finals for the first time in three years had the club ready to attach the season with vigour.

“The players are probably much keener this year, the apprehension of going into last year was noticeable, but we are looking forward to a hopefully more normal year this year,” he said.

“I am really looking forward to get everyone back together again, playing some games last year without crowds wasn’t what we are about.

“The hope for a normal year has got the group up and about I think.”

The red, white and black are coming off a practice match against Torquay last week and is set to go into its clash against the Kangaroos at full strength, barring any final week mishaps.

“We are pretty focused on round one, but sometimes I think people overrate the importance of round one and the win or the loss,” McLaren said.

“You go in just trying to win as many games as you can, we just set up to be really hard to play against and if you’re a good team, you win enough games to finish top three and you give yourself a chance.

As for the growing target on Koroit, the senior coach believes it does not influence anything and is just ready to get the season started and aim for another successful campaign.

“I am sure most people are sick of Koroit and would love to see someone else win it,” he said.

“We understand and I watch other sports and know everyone loves to see a new team win it.

“We would like to hope people respect what we have done, but I think the bigger target each year ship has sailed.

“There is an element of if we don’t have a fair bit of success, it would be a failure type of feeling, but honestly it is not something we have talked about at all.”