Ben Jeffery is out to prove his doubters wrong in the clash against Junee on Sunday.
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Kangaroos are yet to win a game this season but get the chance to put their first points on the board at Laurie Daley Oval.
‘Roos have had the hardest draw to the start the season, with losses to Southcity and Gundagai in the first two rounds.
However, the new captain-coach doesn’t believe the are a fair indication of where they Wagga club is at.
He is looking to show their real colours against another club on the rebuild.
“If we play the right footy we can put it to teams,” Jeffery said. “I think in patches against Gundagai and Southcity we really put it to them and I don’t think they gave us any credit for that all.”
Jeffery has been disappointed by the reaction to their first two losses of the season.
“To be honest I think people think we are pretty ordinary,” Jeffery said. “It is a bit frustrating for the boys.
“We have been working hard all off-season and to get things like that in the paper, saying they are that filthy that they didn’t beat us by 60 points, is a bit frustrating.
“But it is a long season and hopefully we can get a few wins together.
“We are a whole new team, we’ve played a couple of teams that were in the grand final and have been together for years now so hopefully it will come together for us.”
Jeffery believes the clash with Junee is crucial to getting the team headed in the right direction.
“Obviously we haven’t won yet and you can say what you want about the first two games but we lost both games,” he said.
“We are definitely going in with a must-win attitude.
“I think if we turn up with the right frame of mind and attitude it is going to get you half way there.”
One thing not in Jeffery’s favour is injuries to key forwards.
Hayden Jolliffe won’t play due to a knee complaint and his future remains clouded.
“It’s a big out for us,” Jeffery said. “He’s been really good for us and trained hard all off-season.
“It’s unfortunate with injuries but he is looking to get that sorted and be back as soon as he can.”
Jolliffe has a knee bursae, causing it to continue to swell, and will seek specialist advice before deciding what the next step of action should be.
“You can cut them out and it is a quick recovery so I think he might be looking to do that way,” Jeffery said.
“It will be a couple of weeks (out).”
Jack Kelly is also out after injuring his shoulder in a car accident and is expected to miss the next week or two.
However, Steve O’Neill is right to return.