Luke Taylor's love of soccer is a deep-seated one and was ingrained from an early age.
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The Kootingal Kougars captain remembers kicking the ball around as a young kid with his father, who had come out from England to play with Melbourne.
"I think his passion for the game certainly influenced myself and my [three] brothers," he said.
Now 40, Taylor's passion for the game still remains strong, fortified by the club's younger generation and their passion.
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Seeing so many youngsters playing, and enjoying the game is one of the things he has most enjoyed about his four years in the purple.
"It's a really good family club and they've got a fantastic juniors set-up so we're getting a lot of young guys coming through that are really passionate about the game," he said.
That young talent was one of the reasons the club decided to make the jump to the new Premier Division competition this year.
"With the juniors coming up we just thought it would be a fantastic time to put a foundation in place," Taylor said.
On Saturday the club celebrated their first win since returning to the region's top flight, beating fellow newcomers South United 2-1.
"It was a great win for us and the club, and certainly gives the young guys a lot of confidence," he said.
They are for the most part a young side with Taylor - who boasts first grade experience in Newcastle and Coffs Harbour - one of a few older heads there to provide a guiding hand as they navigate the challenges of first grade football. .
Saturday was a tight tussle, Luke Abel's second half strike sealing the victory after scores were locked at 1-all at half-time.
"Souths is another great young team. They're in the same sort of situation as us. They've got a couple of older guys playing in the team but a lot of young guys," Taylor said.
"And they're a quick, fast team and we were very, very excited about the win."
He was particularly happy with the way his side contested and stepped up to the challenge after being beaten 4-1 in the first round. They showed some good "grit and determination" and were able to win a lot of 50-50 balls.
It was a promising performance and gives them something to build on.
"For the young guys it's just about confidence so having that win, we can just build on that and hopefully the guys each game they'll start to gel with each other and we'll have a bit more game management, just know when the right time to release the ball and the right time to hold the ball," Taylor said.