The Ararat Rats will face Warrack Eagles in a bid to get back on the winners list in the round five match on Saturday.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Rats are coming off a loss against the Burras but will be keen to put in a better performance away from home against the fourth-places Eagles.
Ararat coach Terry Keilar said while it is a tough challenge, the team is confident they can put in a strong performance.
“It is definitely a game we want to go in with confidence that we can be competitive and hopefully get the win,” he said,
“It is a tough ask to get a win against Warrack, it is a bit of a drive but we are certainly doing everything we can to put in a good effort and perform better.”
The Eagles have only lost one game for the season and will go into the match as favourites to add another win to its tally, but Keilar said the team has done its homework and has the belief within the group to cause the upset.
“We do know a few of their quality players, and are respectful of the team,” he said.
“We had a few forward half entries but our disposal really let us down last week, so that really put our defence and midfield on pressure.
“After watching the replay in the review, we also played fairly wide last week, so we want to make sure we come through the corridor to use more options.”
Keilar also said the round six team will have some different faces, compared to the squad that lost to Minyip-Murtoa.
“There will be a couple of changes, we have young Daniel Mendes who injured his hamstring on Saturday, who is a massive loss to the team,” he said.
“That combined with a few other guys we are missing means our midfield will be stretched, but hopefully we can get a few guys back into the team this week which will help.
“We expect those guys who do come up step up and play their role, we have faith in them and we expect them to put in a good effort, whoever pulls on a Rats guernsey.”
The Rats will need to start better than last week, when they conceded nine goals to the Burras, something that has been a common trend for the Ararat team this year.
“We identified that the first quarters we have been blown out of the park a bit, but that has been against three of the top teams on the ladder,” he said.
“No excuses for it and we just need to make sure we stop it happening so regularly.
“The intensity and endeavour is there, we just need to be a bit smarter with our decision making and disposal effiencicy, if we can lift that we will be in better.”
The match is set to start at 2.20pm at Warracknabeal’s ANZAC Park.