KOROIT premiership forward Sam Dobson is tipped to be the 2015 leading goalkicker following a season-ending injury to perennial winner Jason Rowan.
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Rowan’s absence — the Warrnambool star has collected seven of the past 10 awards — has paved the way for a new spearhead to stand up and collect the coveted medal.
The competition has lost three of last season’s top five goalkickers.
Rowan, who has topped 100 goals four times in his illustrious career, is sidelined with a knee injury, former Camperdown mentor Dan Casey is coaching a Colac junior side and zippy North Warrnambool Eagle Mark Murphy has returned to Warrnambool and District league club South Rovers.
Dobson finished second to Rowan last year with 70 majors, a tally which included finals heroics.
A survey of senior coaches by The Standard revealed they believe the dangerous Saint is capable of a similar haul this season.
Warrnambool’s Scott Carter, South Warrnambool’s Nigel Kol, Camperdown’s Phil Carse, Port Fairy’s Brett Evans and Portland’s Luke Crane have all tipped Dobson to win the goal-kicking award.
Carter expects Dobson to take his game to another level.
“I think he is playing in the premiership-favourite side in my opinion and I think they will tend to play him closer to goal this year,” he said.
Cobden co-coaches Wayne Robertson and Paul Foster rate Dobson’s older brother Ben, back at Victoria Park after a season in the Geelong league, while Koroit mentor Adam Dowie has anointed strong-marking Warrnambool swingman Sam Cowling as his tip.
North Warrnambool Eagles co-coach Brendan Murfett says boom recruit Dylan Parish can replicate his Wimmera league feats in his first Hampden league campaign.
Parish kicked 111 goals for Horsham as a teenager in 2011.
“I think he’ll definitely give us a target to kick to,” Murfett said.
Murfett said the four-time Horsham premiership forward had impressed throughout the pre-season.
“Dylan had a great hit-out last week. He was marking everything,” Murfett said after the Eagles’ pre-season round-robin games on Saturday.
“Today it was early for him and dewy footy so he couldn’t mark it as much and he didn’t have much influence but we know he’s a great player and opposition will soon see that as well.”
Terang Mortlake coach Matthew Irving said Chris Bant was primed for a big season in attack.
“He’s had a really good summer and with the way we are structuring up he’ll play closer to goal,” he said. “Between him and (Stephen) Staunton hopefully we’ll get 100-plus goals out of them.”
Hamilton Kangaroos coach Jarrod Holt is hopeful Hugh Douglas can have a standout year as the Roos’ focal point.