Kye Halloway on his development at Boomers ahead of Albury City clash

Halloway was in sparkling form three weeks ago, scoring twice as Boomers beat Albury United 3-0 in the 2021 FA Cup final.

His first was a spectacular long-range strike which brought the crowd to life and underlined the 19-year-old's confidence at senior level.

"I didn't think it was going in," Halloway admitted.

"I hit it and I thought it was going straight to the keeper's hands but then it just kept floating.

"Being the underdogs gave us that little bit more motivation than United.

"I feel they had that expectation, which put it on them, and it was an unreal win."

Halloway started his junior career at Wodonga Diamonds, spending time with Albury City and Murray United before joining Boomers four years ago.

He's now one of the first names on coach Andrew Grove's team sheet and is going to have defenders in a spin with his energy and ability to create a chance from nothing.

"I've definitely got more confident over the years," Halloway said.

"It takes a while getting comfortable in that senior environment just because you're young and there are big bodies out there.

"But I did have a solid season last year and I'm hoping it all clicks again.

"The biggest thing for me has been getting stronger and building up my speed, getting fitter."

Boomers face Albury City at Glen Park this weekend in the first of nine Saturday fixtures scheduled throughout 2022.

ALSO IN SPORT

It'll be the home side's first competitive outing since the cup final, while City are smarting from their 3-2 defeat at the hands of Melrose in round one.

"We did play Albury City in a practice match but that was pre-season so it's hard to know what they have," Halloway said.

"It's hard to say what this season will bring because every team gets injuries, but we're aiming for a top-three finish and then we'll go from there.

"As long as we stay fit, with no injuries, I think we can stay up there with Wangaratta and United."

Saturday's game kicks off at 5:20pm, with round two continuing on Sunday.

There are some intriguing games in store, with new Melrose coach Josh Fluss up against his old club Albury United as they look to bounce back from defeat to Wangaratta, who travel to Cobram this weekend.

Wodonga Diamonds and Twin City both get their league campaigns started with games at home to St Pats and away to Myrtleford respectively.

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: