PRE-SEASON is around the corner for Panorama FC as they look to make the club's 10th anniversary a year to remember.
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Panorama were on the verge of a Western Premier League finals appearance last season when the competition was brought to a halt by COVID-19 with a round to play, and the Bathurst boys feel there's some unfinished business on the field.
They'll be taking on the 2022 campaign with a couple of fresh faces and potentially a new home city rivalry, with Bathurst 75 assessing their options to make a WPL entry.
Panorama's Beau Yates said there's plenty of excitement around the club to get stuck into the new season.
"We have a 20-man squad that was put together before Christmas, so we're all organised with that. The rest of the club will start pre-season next Monday," he said.
"We're looking forward to getting back out there and everyone's excited after everything was cut short, and I'm sure the whole football community feels the same.
"We're celebrating our 10th season at the club this year so it's going to be a big one for us. We're really pumped and looking forward to it."
Panorama first came on to the Bathurst District Football scene in 2012 and quickly fielded teams across all grades across the following seasons, and were one of the leaders in the push for WPL's return.
The 2021 Golden Boot winner, Jacob Soetens, won't be re-joining the squad this year.
Soetens racked up 10 goals across the season to finish as the joint-highest scorer alongside Parkes Cobras' Alec Bateson.
That big loss for Panorama will be patched up in a big way thanks to the inclusion of several former Western NSW FC players.
"In Western Premier League we've had a few guys move on but we've had a couple of ex-Western guys come in, which is great," Yates said.
"We've picked up Ryan Campbell, Steve Long and Matty Hobby. They're three big inclusions from Western."
Panorama are also looking forward to potentially facing some new faces on the pitch in 2022.
The potential inclusion this season of both Orange CYMS and Bathurst 75 is hoped to further boost the profile of the competition.
Yates said the expansion is something every club was expecting to see as the competition gained a foothold in the region.
"It's great to see the competition expanding up to 11 teams now. We knew once we got this competition off the ground that it was going to be moulded and grown into something bigger and better," he said.
"This year hopefully we can through the season in full and see this bigger competition in full swing. We know all the other teams will be similarly pumped and ready to go.
"I think Bathurst 75 will get things going, so that will be great for us to have a Bathurst derby. We'll definitely be looking forward to that.
"I'm sure it will continue to expand in the next couple of years with reserves and women's."
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