Bunyip’s Under-16 side has been a shining light in 2025.
The Bulldogs have gone through the season undefeated, winning 12 games and drawing one to sit six points clear on top of the table.
It follows careful work in pre-season from co-coaches Ben Cunningham and Ben Simpson to provide a viable pathway for the youngsters into senior footy.
The culture that the squad has sought to forge has proven Bunyip is a club worth representing rather than driving elsewhere, attracting several young community members and their families to the Bullpen.
“One of the focuses for us when I took the job on was to build community,” Cunningham said.
“It’s probably been one of the biggest concerns for the club over the last six or seven years.
“We’ve had a lot of really good footballers who would go through our junior program, play youth football and then give football away or move onto other clubs and haven’t seen Bunyip as a destination club even though the families are from the community.
“We seemingly haven’t been able to keep those kids at the club which I think has been evidenced by recent seasons where the seniors haven’t been successful on the scoreboard.
“There was a real effort to consolidate the club in a league that was more local and could be more competitive at a senior level.”
The new recruits, a strong complement of bottom-agers who have long been a formidable side throughout juniors and the change of league have all contributed to Bunyip progressing from a 3-14 win in the West Gippsland Football Netball Competition last year to bulletproof this year.
Keeping the squad together and thriving is critical for the sustainability of the club, established in 1879.
The 44 consecutive senior losses until last month which included winless 2022 and 2023 seasons highlight the club’s recent mire, with the Under-16s’ success this year a rare bright spot.
“We want to make it a destination club by getting the right people in to drive the development of the club to attract those previous players back because they see the positive work being done on and off the field,” Cunningham said.
Developing strong relationships between the under-16s and under-18s has been another focus, aligning with the desire to build community.
While the squad’s holistic success represents a significant step forward for the Bulldogs, several members of the playing group have also individually had their talent recognised.
Under-16s player Kai Jones has ensconced himself in the senior lineup, named in the side’s best in six of his 11 senior games, while Heath Mollison has also received senior exposure.
Jones, Ethan Densley and Hamish Collett were also selected in an Ellinbank intraleague game.
A further six players were part of the Western All Stars representative side which reached the grand final after success against other regions of Gippsland: Lenny Clark, Coby Hoult, Archie Whelan, Tyler Sutton, Clancy Cunningham, Ben Interlandi.
“They’re a really dedicated bunch and a pretty united bunch,” Cunningham said.
“There’s no factions and that’s driven not only by the leadership group but also by players who have come up from top-aged 14s to be bottom aged 16s, they’re really driven as well.
“They have played some unbelievable football this year and their willingness to learn and improve has been great.”
Captain Lachie Knight spoke about the honour and enjoyment of leading the side.
“It’s great leading the boys, I just try to be loud and vocal on field and support everyone and get around the boys when they have tough times,” Knight said.
“Everyone’s been getting around us because we have a chance of going pretty far in the season and there hasn’t been much success in the last couple of years so it’s been really supportive.
“We’ve learned to play more as a team as the season’s gone.
“Everyone was trying to have their moment for a while but now we’re coming together and play a lot better.”
