ORANGE CYMS captain coach Mick Sullivan is banking on competition for places to lift the green and golds back to the top of the Group 10 premiership.
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And it needs to.
Following the biggest player recruitment drive in his five-years at the helm of the club, Sullivan stressed the green and golds’ newest additions will have to earn their spots in the CYMS premier league team for the round one derby with Orange Hawks at Wade Park in five months time.
And that audition process begins in three weeks.
CYMS start training prior to Christmas, and with a host of new faces - Tim and Robbie Mortimer, Matt and Trent Rose, Larsen Marabe and Logan Polkington - now calling Wade Park home, Sullivan says getting on the front foot with preparations for next season was crucial in a bid to get the former Group 10 big guns back in the premiership hunt.
“With the good local base we’ve got this year, numbers at training will be strong,” Sullivan enthused.
“Last year with all of the travellers we had training was hard, and we put on extra sessions to accommodate those guys which probably didn’t reward the local guys.
“There’s going to competition for places this year, and fitness will be key.”
Fitness is one thing, ensuring the new-look team fits is another.
Along with Sullivan, CYMS’ 2015 backline now consists of three additional players who can play in the halves or fullback, throw incumbents Tim Bassmann and Ben McAlpine in the mix - both of whom have won Group 10 player of the year awards - and selection headaches are inevitable.
Sullivan, however, stressed versatility was key when considering the signings of the new CYMS six, but added he won’t be chopping and changing his line-up week in week out like he did throughout 2014.
He believes competition for places will be good for the club, with a host of last season’s premiership winning first division side also banging on the selection door ahead of next year.
“We’ll try a few different combinations and see what works, but that’s what the pre-season is for,” he said.
“This year I’ll see what I like and stick with it. I changed things on the run with our squad too much last season.
“I said last year Tim probably looked like he’d handle lock, and he’s versatile which is great for us ... and if he’s looking at the forwards then that’s good competition for Benny Gosper.
“I’m looking forward to it.”
POSSIBLE CYMS TEAM: 1 Ben McApline, 2 Tim Bassmann, 3 Tim Mortimer, 4 Robbie Mortimer, 5 Jarrod Robbins, 6 Matt Rose, 7 Mick Sullivan, 8 Logan Polkington, 9 Sam Hill, 10 Zac Bohan, 11 Larsen Marabe, 12 Trent Rose, 13 Ben Gosper.
