Leongatha set for another strong season
LEONGATHA footballers resume preseason training on Saturday, January 31 after the Christmas break, with a lot happening during the off-season.
The club looks to have retained all its premiership players including Trood Award and Rodda Medal winner of 2025, now premiership player Ben Harding.
The exception is Essendon great and Leongatha premiership player Dyson Heppell who has joined Collingwood as a development coach in 2026, which he will combine with continuing to play for Port Melbourne in the VFL.
But Leongatha is believed to have added a few promising recruits including local up and comers, and some friends of Leongatha premiership players keen to share in the club’s success.
“The indications are that numbers in the Senior Group will be pretty good, and we’ve got a good group of Under 18s from last year coming up,” Football Manager Trevor Walder said.
He highlighted a core of players who largely featured in the Under 18s in 2025 but tasted Senior action.
Finn Donohue, Aiden Williams and Clayton McGrath were among those who acquitted themselves well when given Senior opportunities and are likely to appear more at the top level this season.
“We’re looking forward to seeing them with a full preseason under their belt and focusing on Senior football,” Trevor said.
Promising young ruckman Sam Bradley, who played a mixture of Under 18s and Reserves last campaign, is expected to get a feel for the Seniors in 2026.
The Parrots already look to be the team to beat on the back of an impressive run that has seen them play off in the Grand Final in every completed season since 2015, winning in 2017, 2018, 2021*, 2022, 2023 and 2025.
Leongatha is also well positioned in terms of junior ranks.
“Under 16 numbers are looking good because we were predominantly a bottom-aged side last year, meaning most of our side were first year Under 16s, whereas this year those guys are going to be stepping up and being top-age Under 16s,” Walder said.
With the Under 16s almost making finals last season, hopes are high the side can build on that platform this year.
While the lack of top-aged Under 16s last year means there won’t be too many stepping up from that level to the Under 18s, Trevor said the Parrots will have enough players in that top underage side.
“It’s early days,” he noted, pointing out many Under 18s tend to start training in February.
“Our numbers on paper show that we should be comfortable but not overburdened with numbers,” Walder said of the Under 18 contingent.
