Tamworth FC to take on Alstonville FC in Australia Cup opener

The club is in the midst of a rebuilding period, and while Gowland believes all the individual components for success are present, he will wait until tomorrow's Australia Cup third round clash against Alstonville FC to see how it all comes together.

"We are definitely using the match as an opportunity to test team cohesion," Gowland said.

"We are a fresh team. We had a big change after we won a couple of premierships, some older players retired so we have a very fresh-looking side this year.

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"It's going to be interesting to see how we bond together."

With a bye in round two, this is the first game Tamworth FC has played in this year's Australia Cup.

Given the distances between many of the clubs in the competition, teams often know little to nothing about their opposition prior to games.

Though Gowland expects Alstonville to be strong given their 9-0 defeat of Urunga FC in round two, it's hard to say for sure.

"It's going to be a fairly solid game," he said.

"It's hard to get a judge on what the quality of teams are like ... but I have no doubt they're going to be a very solid team."

Having been with the club since 2019, when he moved to Tamworth from his native Bathurst, Gowland was "honoured" to take on the captaincy last year.

It is not the first time he has led a team, having done so in Wollongong and his hometown, and he hopes to build up not just the first grade team during his tenure, but the club as a whole.

"We're looking at the long picture," Gowland said.

"I'm also on the committee as treasurer and deeply involved with that ... we're trying hard to make it a really good club to be at."

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