It’s been an odd start to the year for last season’s runners up, but Greta coach Chris Dube believes his team will settle into their match-winning groove sooner rather than later.

The Blues sit at eighth on the senior ladder with a single win from their first three games, but their most recent result, a 72-point triumph over King Valley, proves they still have what it takes to compete with the best in the league.

Dube said consistency within the team and on the park was crucial.

“We’ve been patchy, I think we’re like most teams where we’ve struggled to get great continuity week to week,” he said.

“More vacancies, more swaps than I’d like in the first three matches we’ve played, but at the same time it’s exciting we get to test new guys and blend some of the new faces with the old ones.

“Round one is always a little funny, there’s always a few prior commitments which clash with the start of the season, and in round two, credit to Moyhu, they just jumped us - to be honest, there was a fair bit of stuff I didn’t like and the players got that feedback pretty direct.

“Last week, we sort of bounced back with a real team effort – we had 21 contributors last week, and some of the vision I’ve showed the boys this week of those team-first behaviours that actually resulted in scores, it gives a bit of nourishment to the guys to do those things.

“Our best is very good, and our worst is not very good, so wins are going to be hard-fought this year.”

The Blues’ opponents this weekend, Goorambat sit with a 2-1 record, and are coming off an impressive 26-point win over Bonnie Doon.

Dube said being willing to perform team acts and moving the ball efficiently from stoppages would help them take the four points.

“We always prepare to play their best side, so we expect them to be very good,” he said.

“We know they’re a contested side, we know they pride themselves on a bit of first-to-the-ball surge footy, I think if we can match them on the inside, then we might have some weapons on the outside, but we know we’re coming up against a really proud team that won’t make it easy for us.

“I think it’s going to be a pretty bruising affair.”

The Blues take on the Bats on Sunday, 26 April from 2pm.

Elsewhere on Sunday, Bright is at home to Milawa, the Panthers welcome Tarrawingee to Friendlies Oval, and King Valley hosts Moyhu.

Meanwhile, Whorouly will host Bonnie Doon on Saturday, with a full day of football and netball at The Den on ANZAC Day.

League operations manager Daniel Saville said the calendar forced his hand to an extent.

“This year, we've had to get creative with the round five fixture, with ANZAC Day falling on a Saturday for the first time since 2015, excluding 2020,” he said.

“I made the decision to schedule Sunday as the default match day for matches to lessen the burden for clubs playing on a public holiday, especially with some of the complexities that need to be sorted for this to happen.

“In saying that, I'm a fan of trying games in different time slots and was happy to move ahead with this marquee fixture.

“It's a privilege for us to play community sport on ANZAC Day and I know that the two clubs involved, Whorouly and Bonnie Doon, are fully supportive of the concept, along with College JFC and Myrtleford JFC, who are playing in the morning.”