mmg.com.au

A new era at the Moama-Echuca Border Raiders has begun with the appointment of Peter Beis as president for 2013.

Beis, who was one of two candidates, will be joined by vice-president Darryl Brown, while David Coward has been re-appointed as the men’s senior coach.

Beis takes over from former president Shirley Tisher and said he was keen to see a change in direction, particularly with youth development.‘‘We want to make sure the juniors know there’s more to go on to,’’ he said.‘‘Some of the 16 and 17-year-olds didn’t even know we had a reserves and senior side, and some of them were very handy on the field.’’The confusion stems from the Border Raiders’ Saturday morning junior competition and the Sunday competition, with Coward saying many parents and members of the club thought teams playing on each day were from separate clubs.

‘‘We’ve all said we’re going to be called the Moama-Echuca Border Raiders Soccer Association and everyone will play in the same strip for representative matches and senior players will work with the juniors,’’ he said.

‘‘I’m not saying they didn’t in the past, but there was a perception of parents thinking, ‘what’s that on a Saturday morning?’ Well that’s our soccer team.’’

By erasing the confusion, Beis hoped junior numbers would grow at the club and young players would aspire to play in the seniors in years to come.

‘‘Some seniors will go help out at junior training and we’ll get some social events happening before the season starts, so we can bring the junior players and senior players together with their families where everyone gets to know everyone and gets to know the club as well,’’ Beis said.

It will be the president’s second year at the club since moving from Shepparton, saying his senior roles at his former club and in his working life would hold him in good stead leading the Border Raiders.

‘‘There are a lot of parents who could help out but didn’t know what to do, so teaching them jobs and sharing the load will be one of the important changes,’’ Beis said.

Coward echoed his president’s ambition.

‘‘I don’t think we were dissatisfied with what the people had done previous and I don’t want it to be seen like they didn’t do a good job, because they did,’’ Coward said.

‘‘But like any organisation, any factory, any business, you have to look back and say, ‘what can we do better?’

‘‘We can do this a lot better than we have in the past few years and can improve in certain areas where we can grow more numbers and get more sponsorship and improve overall.’’

From a playing perspective, the coach said he was looking forward to an improved performance from 2012, which yielded just two wins as the side finished bottom of the Bendigo Amateur Soccer League ladder.

‘‘There were a lot of changes with the young players coming in and I hope that experience brings better results,’’ he said.

‘‘They shouldn’t be as nervous as they were last year, but we still have to work a lot harder on our fitness because I think that was an area where in the later games we weren’t strong enough.’’

The signs are already positive, with about 20 players attending the first pre-season training from the six this time last year.

Brown’s Lady Raiders are also looking ahead to 2013 and a potential third straight premiership.

He said despite already losing six players, he was hopeful of regaining three former players.

‘‘We lost 11 players at the end of last year and still managed to find success and continued the development of our juniors,’’ he said.

‘‘I know a lot of the Bendigo clubs are really working hard to find ways to knock us off.

‘‘It’s a great mark of respect that the Bendigo sides are doing all they can to defeat them (the players) and they earned that respect after all their hard work.’’

With positive feedback from the club’s committee members and life members concerning the new direction, the Raiders seem united in their quest for success.