Soccer
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EASTERN Wanderers coach Andrew Douglas has revealed the fledgling soccer club has big plans to bolster its playing roster for the 2015 season.
On the back of a roller coaster debut year in the Griffith and District Amateur Football Association (GDAFA), the Wanderers are keen to add a couple of quality imports to their list.
"Most of the other clubs have three or four marquee players from overseas and it makes it hard for us to compete against them," Douglas explained.
"We knew there was some overseas players playing in the competition but we didn't realise the extent of it before this season.
"We will need to sit down at some stage and have a chat about what we need to do to be competitive next year."
Douglas confirmed the Wanderers are keen to import their own semi-professional players if their budget allows it.
"It all comes down to the financial aspect," he said.
"If we have enough money we would definitely consider picking up one or two marquee players."
The Wanderers enjoyed a relatively successful start to their inaugural season, until injuries and unavailability cruelled the Wagga-based club.
With only a few rounds left in the season proper, Douglas admits finals are basically out of reach.
The final nail was driven into the coffin when the Wanderers went down 6-1 to competition powerhouse Hanwood FC at Gissing Oval on Saturday.
Both teams scored early in the piece and it looked like being a cracker game, until the visitors put three goals past the Wanderers keeper in the space of 15 minutes before half time.
The home team was unable to find the back of the net again as Hanwood went on to score twice more in the second half.
Douglas was left to rue a 20-minute lapse from his team.
"I was extremely disappointed with the second half of the first half," he said.
"Overall I wasn't too disappointed with the performance, the second half was a lot better.
"Our decision making was pretty poor which resulted in some pretty soft goals.
"We had our chances to score but we haven't got the polish on the finish that Hanwood have."
Douglas gave a pat on the back to Wanderers strikers Chris Durnan and Jamie Rankin who battled all day but struggled to pierce a strong Hanwood defence.
The Wanderers now look to this week's clash with Yoogali FC at Gissing Oval.