MILDURA co-coach Illario Cavallo admits Saturday’s clash against fifth-placed Wentworth could be season-defining for the emerging Demons.
The Dees have resurrected their year with two thrilling wins over Ouyen United and top side Merbein to sit in sixth place, on equal points with Wentworth, but still six out of the top four.
And a loss at home could potentially be fatal in terms of securing a finals berth.
“I think it is,” Cavallo said. “I think if we want to play finals or move forward as a club then these are the games you have to win.”
Mildura’s fortunes have been boosted by the mid-season arrival of former Ouyen United utility Marcus Healy, whose movement across half-forward has added an extra dimension in attack.
Healy, who played under 18s with the Demons, had been training with the club during the year but was unsure if he wanted to pull the boots back on.
“We didn’t want to put pressure on him, but obviously if you’ve got a player like that, you want him to play,” Cavallo said.
“So when he came up to us and said ‘I’m excited and I want to play’ we were rapt.
“He just gives us more flexibility. We had Tyler Martin playing that (half-forward) role, so with Marcus being here, that has freed Tyler up to go back to the wing and I thought his (Martin’s) first half last weekend was unbelievable.”
The Demons got the points in a thriller against Wentworth earlier this season, when 2017 McLeod medallist Josh Martin took a spectacular mark and goaled late, and Cavallo was expecting a similar contest at Brian Weightman Oval.
“It’s one of those games that you have got to be up for and if we are not up for it, we will get done, simple as that,” he said.
“They’re a good side and they’re really good in the contest, so we have to match them in that area and try and get them on the spread.
“They’ve also got some really good talls, so if we can keep the ball out of their hands I think we will be OK.”
Cavallo said Mildura’s noticeable improvement from 2017 had not come by chance, as he and fellow co-coach Anthony Matthews had been building cohesion in the group over three pre-seasons.
“You can’t build that over one season, so for three seasons now, even last year with coronavirus, we have been drilling in how we want to play, and it is coming together,” he said.
“The feeling is good now, and it has been pretty good all year, to be honest.
“The last two weeks there have been positives and negatives for us to work with. The negatives being that we have let both teams back into games, but the positive is that we found a way to win.”
