The words of Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley at the 2018 Copeland Trophy could be said to hundreds of teams every year after they lose a grand final.
In 2019, they could have been said to Echuca.
It's been 19 months since the Murray Bombers fell to the ever dominant Kyabram in the 2019 GVL grand final by 22 points.
A year-and-a-half of what ifs, of what can I improve, of where to now.
Echuca co-coach Andrew Walker admits it's something that has stayed with him.
“I've thought about it a lot,” he said.
“When you have a year off, you can consistently think about it, and that's tough. We were looking forward to a big year in 2020 and trying to make up for it by having a great year of football.
“But that wasn't going to be the case. Now we get our chance, we get to play against them and see where we are at and I know that our whole group are looking forward to the opportunity.”
Echuca will face up to the clash on Saturday in better form after bouncing back from their round one loss against Seymour with a strong win against Benalla.
“Our first game was not us,” Walker said.
“We were really disappointed in the performance, but what we put on the field against Benalla was a lot more like how we want to play.
“It wasn't perfect. We missed some shots in front of goal. We kicked 3.7 in the opening quarter, and five of those seven were set shots. That simply isn't good enough.
“But we have put some time and work into that area and a few other things to start to build towards this game.
“It's a big match and one which is really important to us as a club, so we want to produce our best football.”
It will be a big day at Victoria Park on Saturday, with under 16s football beginning at 8.45am, and netball starting at 9.15am.
A barbecue breakfast will be available at the ground early, with the club's membership stalls operating as well.
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