Last year: Third (11-7)

Gains: Isaac Bunge (Terrigal Avoca), Connor Hogan (returning from Albury thirds), Sam Lawrence (returning from Albury thirds)

Losses: Peter Hancock (retired), Jake Nicholson (Melbourne)

Most recent finals appearance: 2023

Most recent flag: 2010

Captain: Dylan Cook

Who starts the season flag favourites and why?: I would have to say Holbrook despite losing Raven Joliffe over the off-season. The Brookers counteracted that by adding some real class to their already strong list. I think Jindera will also challenge for the flag but the smokey are the Giants who made it through to the preliminary final last year. If you analyse the draw, I think Pumpa (Athatanitis) and Ducky would be giggling to themselves. They play all the sides that finished outside the top-six last season twice, except for Jindera who they only play once. With that massive advantage it's hard to see them missing the top-two and the further advantage of having two cracks of making the grand final on their home ground. Beware the sleeping Giants!

Your likely top-six?: In no order, Holbrook, CDHBU, Osborne, Jindera, RWW Giants, Howlong

Which side is likely to be the biggest improver?: Jindera. Missed finals last year and I think they will challenge for a top-two finish. Two of the better leaders going around in Mackie and Garland which will be huge for their list.

Best player in the competition?: There are a stack of great players in the competition. But if I look at it as who is the one guy I would love in my side and the hardest match up, I'm going with Trent Castles. If Trenta can keep his body healthy this year, I think he kicks the ton.

Best recruit in the competition over the off-season?: I haven't seen him play, but I'm hearing pretty big wraps on Holbrook's new recruit, Josh Kable. Very good defender and great intercept mark.

Which recruit at your club excites you the most and why?: Isaac Bunge - a guy that moved to town. He's a good size that can play forward and go into the ruck.

Who has been the standout at pre-season training so far?: Apart from our captain, Dylan Cook and Charlie Hamilton, I would say it's the young boys stepping up from our thirds. A few of them had a taste of senior footy last year but to see their attitude and the way they are attacking pre-season has really stood out to Dave and myself so far.

How tough was recruiting this off-season compared to previous experiences?: I think recruiting is always a challenge. Sometimes you can be really lucky and land some guys early and other years it can take more time. As far as list retention, our recruiting committee has done a super job. This enabled us to target certain areas where we think we need a little help. It wasn't necessarily ringing 50 guys because we believe we have some pretty good depth, so we want to back these guys in as well as exposing our thirds who made a preliminary final last year.

What have the numbers been like at pre-season training?: Our numbers have been pretty solid the whole way through since pre-Christmas. We have some guys working away as well as fulfilling cricket commitments for others. We also have four guys up North playing footy so to be getting our 30 most nights isn't bad.

Who do you hope can step-up and fill the huge hole left after the retirement of Peter Hancock?: Yes, big Cookie will be a big loss but in fairness, he only managed nine games last year so we were able to get a look at some other guys in there. Marcus Reid played a few really good games when filling in and he has also had a big summer to challenge for that role.

What are your expectations this season?: This season is going to be extremely tight so making the top-six would be our first step. All you want as a coach is to see improvement each year. Come round one, the 21 that are selected, we believe, should all be like new recruits. I'm a big believer in, 'if you train the same way, you will get the same results' so we have tried to introduce the guys to different training methods this pre-season.

WE SAY: Matt McDonald and David Miles will co-coach the Spiders for the second year in a row after finishing third on the ladder last year. They won't lack any motivation either after finishing third for the past two years before being eliminated in the opening week of the finals series on both occasions. The Spiders boast a solid back six led by Tyson Logie, Josh Senior and Manny Hughes and are hard to score against. Azzi medallist Hamish Clark alongside Jarred Lane and Matt Wilson add a touch of class but it's the Spiders lack of a key forward that hurts them the most in big matches. Wilson was the club's leading goalkicker last season with 34 goals and is more of a medium sized forward that rotates through the midfield rather than a focal point in attack. McDonald and Miles will be hoping taller marking targets Tyler Lampe and Sasha Newnham can go to another level this season and either or both can kick at least 50 plus goals. The retirement of dual Azzi medallist Peter Hancock has also caused a dilemma in the ruck. Hancock has been one of the most dominant big men in the competition for a long time and recruit Isaac Bunge will get first crack of filling the big shoes left by his retirement. It's no secret that the Spiders threw everything except the kitchen sink at Lavington big man Tim Hanna over the off-season who was close to leaving Lavington Sports Ground before Panther officials convinced the big ruckman to remain for at least one more season. There are also unconfirmed rumours star midfielder Ben Baker is still not over a knee complaint which has flared again while playing up North over the off-season. If true, the Spiders finals credentials start to look shaky, especially considering they have to play Osborne, Jindera, Holbrook, CDHBU and RWW Giants twice and they will need to claim some big scalps to remain a finals force. While there is little doubt the Spiders once again have a list more than capable of playing finals, a nightmare draw leaves little margin for error and you get the feeling that they may be the hard luck story of the preferential draw in the Hume league.

PREDICTION: Seventh