The Jets hosted round 1 of the SCAFL season on Sunday March 7 at Founders Park in Ladera, the unofficial home of the club and by far the best surface going around. The field was in excellent condition, the rain held off and the stage was set for the first game of the season, OC vs the Riverside Football Club in another battle for the Jon Egan Cup.

Riverside have undergone some major changes since last year, dropping their old name and colors and going back to their early Inland Empire roots. Now known simply as the Riverside Football Club, they have recruited well over the winter and came to play on Sunday with intimidating numbers. The Jets also had a healthy dose of new recruits, and between the two clubs they put on a display of raw potential in an entertaining game that could have gone either way.

The Jets have had a huge turnover from last year, with only 6 of 2009's Premiership side of 14 available to play in round 1. Most importantly, the Jets would be without their captain and vice captain from last year, Qemal Shaholli and Kelly Nelson, who formed a midfield that proved to be a big part of the reason for the club's sucessful 09 season. Both Q and Kelly won't be playing this year, and this has meant a major readjustment for the club. Most notable is KB Nelson taking on the captaincy, with young gun Tyler Mounce as his deputy in only his second year.

And so a slightly under-done Jets outfit took the field on Sunday, and with a bunch of guys still trying to remember names let alone game plans it was always going to be a challenge.

Riverside got off to a great start, kicking a couple of goals before the Jets knew what hit them. OC hit back late in the quarter to go into the break down by 6 points but they were clearly rattled. Riverside enjoyed the crowd support and played some inspired football, with stalwarts Deron Lien, Darren Olsen, Mad Dog Morgan and Pat Garthwaite combining with a host of newbies to take early control.

The quarter time huddle couldn't come soon enough for the Jets, and they made some changes and vowed to come out a lot stronger in the second quarter. KB Nelson moved into the middle with Brad Wetherall, and together they worked with ruckman Tyler Mounce to start winning some clearances. The usual suspects settled into their roles eventually, with Seb Aguiari running hard all over the ground before finally going back to what he does best, shutting down forwards, while big Andy Treanor provided a target at full foward.

The second quarter started as a bit of an arm wrestle with RFC getting on top early and looking like they could go all the way, while the Jets were still looking a bit shaky. But then, early in the second quarter, newly appointed vice-captain Tyler Mounce decided to take the game on and lead the way for his team. His second quarter was as good as it gets, booting two goals and dominating the hit outs, and allowing his midfielders every opportunity. The Jets booted 4 goals to 1 for the quarter to take the lead and went into the half time break feeling pretty good about themselves, but Riverside were far from done with.

They exploded out of the blocks to turn the tables on the Jets and score 4 goals to 1 for the quarter, and Riverside went into the 3 quarter huddle 5 points up and feeling pretty confident. But the Jets were finally starting to gel, and the signs were good. The midfield took control and the experienced players led from the front, but it was the new recruits that really stole the show with some great first-up performances.

Steve Rydzon and Jimmy Zertuche played their first ever games and both had solid performances. Jimmy's athleticism and strong hands saw him involved in many plays, while Steve was everywhere laying solid tackles in defense. In fact it was Steve that ultimately won the game for the Jets with a play in the dying seconds of the game. RFC was down by a few points and pushing towards goal, and Steve was outnumbered 2 on 1 in the goalsquare. He not only beat both opponents but then delivered the ball beautifully to another first gamer, Jimmy Vertuche. From there the Jets ran the ball down field to score the next goal that would finally snuff out the Riverside challenge.

Other new recruits also formed a big part of the win, with South African Steven Tait having a huge first impact at full back in a memorable first up game. Brandon Atienza was lively on the wing, while first gamers Christian Dulu and Marc Gleeson showed their experience will be valuable in the months ahead.