Falcons Ready to Take Flight After Tough Debut SeasonFriday, February 10, 2023 - 9:42 AM

A winless season is about as tough as it gets in footy, but West Perth’s WAFLW coach Steve Hazell can't wait for the opening game of 2023.

The Falcons suffered 14 consecutive defeats in 2022, leaving the club with a wooden spoon in its first year.

“Although 2022 highlighted the need for greater maturity, more experience on the park and increased intensity, I remain proud of this group and their resilience to return as well as they have is a testament to their characters.

Last year was tough as a coach and I don’t shy away from that feeling of vulnerability.

But in my years of football, I’ve learnt that it’s within those losses and times of stress that we can learn the most.

I learnt a lot about myself and the direction I’m headed, and I learnt even more about the great group of young women we have at the West Perth Football Club.

We’ve taken huge steps forward to ensure our 2023 is a positive one for the club and our players,” Hazell said.

The coach has a burning desire to help his side strike success.

“I’m immensely proud of our sides’ ability to return to training with such optimism and positivity.

They could have easily left the sport or chosen to shift clubs, but what we’ve seen is their ability to stay connected by red and blue with a desire to promote sustainable success,” he said.

Refusing to deviate from the club’s plan isn’t an option.

“One of our key club values is ‘Resilient – We never give in’ and that’s very much our attitude this year.

I’ve been really impressed with the 2023 Pre-Season.

Our training has seen growth in intensity, chemistry and skill.

We now have a great mix now of enthusiastic and talented players who have graduated from our successful Rogers Cup system, stand out characters from the 2022 Amateur competition, along with WAFLW and AFLW talent coming home.

Our biggest shift has been the facilitation of an external pre-season camp.

We’ve just returned from Gilba Downs in York and the weekend away will have a positive impact on the future of our program,” said Hazell.

The Falcons are also buoyed by a strong recruiting during the off-season.

“We’re proud to have retained a core group of quality players and people.

Our goal was to bring talent home and help guide the next wave of developing talent, so it’s terrific that Katherine Bennett, Brooke Hongell, Bianca Webb and Emily Bennett have joined the club.

They’re experience in AFLW programs and premiership winning WAFLW sides are an invaluable resource to our program here at West Perth.

I’d also like to take this opportunity to highlight how impressed I have been with the commitment and intensity of some very talented individuals who we’ve sourced from the PFL Amateur Competition,” he said.

Hazell believes there’s no ceiling for this young side.

“We’re confident this year you’ll see us sing the song on many occasions.

Working with our Head of WAFLW Development (Luke Richardson) and Director of Womens Football (Trish Medwin), we’ve built a list which we feel can compete against the best in this competition.

We respect our opponents but 2023 is a year for the Falcon to fly.

We aim to win every game we play, and we aim to be competitive for 72 minutes on game day.

The players learnt so much in 2022 and they’ll use that experience as driving forces to achieve success this year.”

West Perth plays East Perth in the opening Round of WAFLW season on Saturday March 11.