New senior coach Jamie Bennett isn’t expecting any miracles as he begins his tenure with the Coleambally Blues.

Bennett replaces Luke Hillier at the helm of the Blues. Hillier stepped down at season's end after four years in the top job.

Bennett returns to the club in a non-playing capacity after previously leading Coleambally for the 1999 and 2000 seasons.

With a plethora of talented players leaving the club after 2022, Bennet is aware it will be an uphill battle in 2023, but he believes it presents local players with a real opportunity to make their mark for Coleambally in the Farrer League competition.

“It’s no secret that we have lost a lot of top-end talent. Curtis Steele is gone, so is Jade Hodge, and the two Hilliers (Max and Luke), and there is a lot of experience and talent walking out the door, but having said that, opportunities now open up for players to step into a role,” Bennett said.

“I guess the exciting and challenging thing for me is to have these kids ready to step into those roles.

“It will be about getting lots of small wins, improving as a team, and my focus will be about the team first and teaching these boys about going into games as a unit and playing well as a team.”

The new coach will have his sons Dean, Kyle, and Mark playing next season, and while there will be a strong focus on local and junior development, Bennett was keeping an eye out for marquee talent.

“Obviously what is always important is to make sure you put time into your local boys and get them to improve, that is the real focus, but we are out and about and looking to add a bit of depth to our list, and it will be important if we can sign a couple of quality midfielders,” Bennett said.

“At the end of the day, you’ve got what you’ve got, and I’m sure there are some lads at Coly looking forward to running through the middle and getting some opportunities next year.”

Coleambally held their first pre-season training run last week, and because it is hard to train during the peak of harvest, Bennett said his attention will turn to a strong start in January.

“Being a community-based team that revolves around farming, it is always difficult this time of year, but we will have a run and then mid-January, we will be right into it and looking to get a bit of a base into these blokes, so when we start cracking the whips, our boys are as ready as they possibly can be to go,” Bennett said.

“It will be about having a fit team, and we know games won’t be about the scoreboard, but it will be about the little wins, and that all starts in January when we hit the paddock.”