Speaking ahead of their round one clash against St Pats, Milne said the goal is firmly on improvement.

"Obviously (the goal is) to play finals hockey and go one step better than last year (top two)," he said.

"We'll look to go that one step further and make the grand final because we got knocked out in the semi.

"That's what the girls are working towards and if they keep working to that they'll definitely get there and they've been building for the last couple of years."

United's eye for going one better is assisted by the fact they've kept a relatively indistinguishable squad.

"Pre-season has gone good, the girls have got in and had a good go fitness wise," Milne said.

"Our team is really similar to last year, where we've picked a few up from Ex-Services and lost two in Katie Tink and Milla.

"We've got a couple of young girls that'll get a lot of game time this season and a few will make their debut which is a good thing for them.

"Hopefully they can keep going the way they've been training and feel no pressure on the hockey field.

"With these couple of girls we've picked up we've definitely got the side to go that step further."

Those two pick ups will include former Orange Ex-Services captain Chloe Barrett and Clare Harris.

Milne believes the addition of Barrett will be instrumental for his side's finals push.

"Picking up Chloe will have a pretty big impact on the team in the striker line," he said.

"The experience she brings to the table with the younger girls will help guide them around up front."