Blues announce coaches for the 2020 Group Four season

The Narrabri Rugby League Football Club announced its coaches for the 2020 Group Four Rugby League season on Monday night.

Daniel Jobson will lead the Blues’ first grade team as captain-coach in the coming campaign after successfully nominating for the position which was left vacant by teammate Brenton Cochrane.

The club named two reserve grade co-coaches – well known clubmen Ashley Hynch and David Toomey – who will both also assist Jobson in his role.

Returning to the ladies’ league tag coaching position is Jeremy Saunders, while Clifford Toomey has taken on the under-18s coaching role.

The Narrabri Blues narrowly missed out on the first grade finals series last season and now Jobson is primed with the task of getting the side back to the heights of the post-season.

Jobson, a hard-running prop with an abundance of talent as well as speed to burn, has been a key player in the past few campaigns for Narrabri including 2017 when the team qualified for the grand final.

He has been a part of the Blues’ first grade team since he was 17, with the exception of a few seasons where he played for Wee Waa and Moree.

At the club’s first pre-season training session at Collins Park yesterday evening, Jobson told The Courier that he loved the club and could not wait for the 2020 season.

The new captain-coach said that he was pleased to have been accepted into the role which he has had his sights set on since the end of last season.

“At the end of the last footy season I knew I wanted to do this,” Jobson said.

“I had been thinking about it for a long time but I didn’t really want to commit to anything until I had a few players who were keen to come and play for me.

“One of those guys is Howie (former Blues first grade grand finalist Daniel Howe) who’s coming back to play, and he’s a big part of what I want to do this year.

“I’ve been talking to a few other guys too who are a bit unsure but if you look around we’ve got Brenton (Cochrane), Josh (Trindall), Sucko (Adam Suckling) and Red (Raymond Goodwin) down here and no doubt they’ll all be first graders this year.”

Jobson said that although pre-season has only just begun he had already set a goal for the coming season.

“My goal is the same as the goal for every coach, to go do the best to win it,” he said.

“We are just going to have to be a bit fitter next season, when you’re fit you don’t seem to miss tackles and you hit those gaps easier.”

Jobson led the Group Four Rugby League first grade best and fairest tally on many occasions throughout the 2019 season, and said that he expected to lead by example as the team’s captain-coach in 2020.

“Missed out on getting it by a few points, there was a few silly things I did in games,” he said.

“Down in Boggabri we were down a few points and got sent off for 10, just trying to do too much and overplayed my role, tackled a bloke without the ball but he was running like he was going to get it so I hit on suspicion.

“There were a few other games I didn’t play to the standard I should have been.

“I came close and I want to have another good season and lead by example and hopefully the rest of the players will follow my lead and be leaders themselves.”

Jobson’s appointment as first-grade captain-coach was a popular one at first glance, with key Blues players including Brenton Cochrane, Josh Trindall, Tristan Lamb, Isaiah Adams, Raymond Goodwin and Adam Suckling all braving the heat yesterday evening at Collins Park.

Jobson said that the Blues would hold a few more sessions before Christmas, the next of which will be tomorrow evening at Cooma Oval from 6.30pm, before getting into a regular routine after the holiday break.

He added that anyone interested in having a game of footy for the club was welcome to come along and have a run with the team.