With several new faces and returning senior players topping up the Eagles’ talent pool, the Bushfield-based club put the horrors of last season’s grand final to bed.

Eagles mentor Glen Scriven hailed the resolve of his young side in the 10.9 (69) to 6.5 (41) against Koroit.

“Last year was bittersweet. We played all year, finished on top and were going for premiers and champions. We just couldn’t get it done,” he told The Standard.

“The resolve of a lot of these boys who had disappointment last year was fantastic.”

Scriven said his side was at full strength due and reaped the rewards.

“We were able to add some younger kids into our squad, some boys from other clubs, and you don’t expect to get back here, but to get back and to go one better is an amazing feeling,” he said.

“I think this year we were at full strength. This time last season we had some boys playing senior football on grand final day, so it was an obstacle to overcome.

“Because the seniors didn’t make it this far, it allowed us to be at full strength.”

With a high-pressure game plan in mind, North Warrnambool closed out the match with its biggest margin of the day.

Scriven said his players executed his plan to perfection.

“We put a massive emphasis on pressuring Koroit. We knew if we let them get any outside ball, their quality of players would hurt us,” Scriven said.

“We knew they had a very dangerous forward line. We had to make sure we restricted the movement they had through their midfield.

“Our midfield were terrific. Our tackles were way up. We played exactly how we wanted to play, which is nice when it comes off.”

North Warrnambool premiership player Tom James was elated to clinch his flag after falling short in seniors last season.

“We obviously had the loss last year, so it’s bloody fantastic to come away here,” he said.

“We put in so much hard work over the pre-season and we did well to get the job done.

“We slowed the game down to get our momentum back and it worked well for us.”