Tamworth Swans coach Paul Kelly has said his side will have a “red hot” go against the New England Nomads at Bellevue Oval on Saturday.
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The Swans, in the midst of a long winless run, are overwhelming underdogs for the round two clash but Kelly is happy with the squad he has assembled for the match.
“It will be a tough game but the boys trained really well last night [Thursday],” Kelly said.
“We’ve got a bit more speed now. Some of the younger players are pretty quick.
“Hopefully that will help us. We lacked a bit of speed before … they might be able to match it a bit with the Armidale midfield.”
The Swans, winless in 2017, lost 146 to 14 away to Inverell in round one, while New England got a measure of revenge for last season’s grand final loss to Gunnedah by thumping the Bulldogs 124-36 on the road.
“We’re gonna go up to Armidale with a full team, I think,” Kelly said, adding: “We’ve picked up some new blokes who are pretty handy. They’ve never played [AFL] before but they’re athletic.”
In other games on Saturday, Narrabri host Gunnedah and Inverell host Moree.
