AT the start of the season, Old Collegians was gunning for a top three finish and the double chance.
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Now, coach Josh Reichman says top spot is the goal.
The Warriors have taken all before them in season 2016, making it to the mid-season bye undefeated and claiming the scalps of all fellow finalists from last year.
But the next four rounds are set to be a telling period as they again come up against Merrivale, Dennington and Allansford, as well as Nirranda, which been around the mark.
Reichman said his side expected their rivals to be priming to topple the Warriors when they meet again.
“They’ve got a lot to prove, whether they use that as motivation or not, knowing that we’re probably the team to beat,” he said.
“But in our eyes, we still think Allansford and Dennington and those guys are still strong and we’ve still got the hunger to beat them.”
The pain from losing last year’s first semi-final to the Cats still stings the Warriors, but they have proven they well and truly belong in the top echelon of teams this season.
They have been the highest-scoring team, averaging 124 points a game (Kolora-Noorat is second with 110 points a game) and also boast a water-tight defence, restricting teams to just 52 points a game (Dennington is next best with 55 points conceded).
Reichman said they were even relishing the chance of testing themselves against so many of the top teams in consecutive weeks, in what could well be a finals preview.
“If you asked us at the start of the year about our draw, I thought we were a bit stiff, but seeing that now, it’s good playing those better sides twice,” he said.
“At least we know what we’re going to get then and can work on the things we need to work on.”
Reichman said he expects little change in the current make-up of the top five before the end of the regular season.
He thinks the double chance will go to Old Collegians, reigning premier Dennington and Allansford – though a favourable draw could see Kolora-Noorat hold onto third spot – and the last remaining finals berth could come down to a battle between Merrivale and Nirranda.
Recent history would suggest the current positions are likely to be pretty settled, with the premier coming from one of the top two sides after round 11.
There have been examples of grand finalists coming from further down the order – notably Dennington coming from fourth in 2013 – but it has always been a top-two side holding the silverware aloft at the end of the day.