Taree Wildcats are preparing for a "massive year" on the field, according to club president Ben Sedlen.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Early in the registration process for the forthcoming season, Sedlen said the club has more than 200 players on the books across all grades.
"I'm really pleased, our committee has done an amazing job (with recruitment)," Sedlen said.
It's quite the turn around for the club, considering only 20 players had signed up before the pandemic 12 months ago.
Last week, the club's Coastal Premier League (CPL) side drew the Camden Haven Redbacks in round three of the FFA Cup.
The sides planned to play in a trial game at Taree's Omaru Park last Saturday but torrential rain forced it to be called off.
"We will treat this as a trial," Sedlen said of the FFA Cup encounter.
Since the Wildcats made a last minute move to the CPL last year, this will be the first meeting between the sides since the 2019 Football Mid North Coast competition.
Camden Haven won both matches that year. But that means very little given the roster changes to both teams in the past two seasons.
Taree is back training on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
"We've got good numbers and there's a lot of young kids we haven't seen play before," Sedlen said.
Sedlen will be in charge of the side this season alongside Michael Wallace and James Goldsmith.
A draw hasn't been released yet but Sedlen understands the season will start the weekend after Easter.
The club will also feature in the CPL reserve grade competition.
For the first time since 2018, the Wildcats will field an over 35s side.
"We've also got three women's teams this year," Sedlen added.
Over summer, the club has run the Tiny Tots program in conjunction with Manning Futsal.
"We've had about 40-50 kids have a kick around on Thursdays," Sedlen explained.
The Summer 6s program has attracted more than 300 players to Omaru Park each week.
Sedlen urged any prospective players to contact the club soon to register for this winter.