All through the most recent pre-season, there had been a major sense of optimism coming from the camp at Rokewood-Corindhap.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The Grasshoppers had recruited well under new coaches Shaune Moloney and Brad Macgowan, but never got the chance to show off their improvement as the 2020 Central Highlands Football League season was abandoned due to COVID-19.
Moloney and Macgowan have confirmed they will be staying on in the position next year and the level of confidence from the leaders certainly hasn't deteriorated.
"We were really disappointed (to not play in 2020). We had such a fantastic pre-season and there was a great buzz around the footy club," Macgowan told The Courier.
"We just had a good quality group of players there and we'd made a lot of progress on our game style and were going to move the ball at a much faster pace.
"We were probably quite a defensive-orientated side in 2019 and in 2020 we were looking to move the ball quicker and try be more attacking. That was led by some of the players like (recruits) Dan Colbert and Jordan Gercovich and guys like that who had come in as centre half forwards for us.
"We are definitely optimistic that will carry on for 2021 and we're well into recruiting. We feel like we are going to add even further players to that mix."
Rokewood-Corindhap clinched six wins in 2019 - three at the start of the year and three at the end - to record its best win-loss performance since joining the Central Highlands competition back in 2011.
Macgowan said finals football was the goal in 2021.
"We certainly feel quite bullish and quite excited about next year if we are able to play and who knows what that actually looks like? Our aim would be to play finals," he said.
Moloney, a premiership captain with North Ballarat in the VFL, was at the helm alongside Damon Delaney in 2019, but is now joined by Macgowan, who is a close friend and former assistant with the Roosters, initially under head coach Gerard FitzGerald.
Macgowan is also the current head coach at Ballarat Clarendon College.