Boggabri Kangaroos making major off season moves

The Boggabri and District Rugby League Football Club is putting together a solid roster as the 2020 Group Four Rugby League season approaches.

The club held its sign-on day late last year and announced that Shane Rampling would return for a third season as first grade coach, former player Darren Certoma would take the reserve grade reigns and long time ladies’ league tag coach Jason Kemp would resume his role.

The club has hosted several pre-season training sessions before and after Christmas and will begin training two nights a week on Tuesdays and Thursdays in February.

Almost the entire first grade team is expected to play again in 2020, however Andrew Cameron has departed to play a season of soccer with mates.

The club announced the signing of Bevan Flanagan last week who played with the Baradine Magpies last season as a lock/five-eight.

The 24-year-old played with Kangaroo Nick Millar in 2015 for Bathurst St Patricks Football Club, where the team made the semi-finals of its competition.

Last night the club also announced another new signing at a pre-season session, with former Narrabri Blues key man Josh Trindall named as a Kangaroo for 2020.

Some more welcome positive news for the club is the return of Aaron Hobden who missed last season with a back injury. Hobden has been training well this pre-season.

Rampling told The Courier that he was pleased with how the pre-season was progressing and that his goal for 2020 was to play finals footy.

“Pre-season’s going really well at the moment, we are getting some good numbers, averaging about 22 to 25 players each week,” he said.

“We have a lot of guys still away too and working.

“All and all we are shaping up pretty good.

“We’ve lost Andrew Cameron and obviously we lost Kahn Juhnke halfway through last year, but other than that we’ve pretty much retained everyone which gives us good continuity.

“Our goal this year is to qualify for the finals.

“I think the boys over the past two years have been improving really well.

“Last year we lost a couple of games that we should have won so hopefully this year we will be a lot fitter and mentally tougher, and we’ll add in a bit of quality and a bit of experience to get us those wins that we should have won last year.

“If we turn it around and get those wins we will get into the finals.”

Rampling said that the signing of Trindall would assist that.

“Josh brings a lot of X-factor, direction and experience in the key areas of the game to our club,” Rampling said.

“We are certainly looking forward to working with him and I’m excited about what he will bring.

“He’ll play halfback for us which will allow Jayde Campbell to push back out into the centres.”

Rampling said that he had been impressed with the club’s efforts during pre-season training, and that several players had stood up during the sessions.

“We’ve got a lot of work to do, our goal this pre-season is to get as fit as we can,” Rampling said.

“We are focussing a lot on working with the ball under fatigue so we can play well under pressure and under fatigue.

“The boys are really enjoying it, it’s probably the hardest pre-season they’ve had.

“I’ve probably been a bit lenient the past couple of years because we stepped up from second division but the boys have all bought into it.

‘They’re all ready to go and are really excited for the season ahead, they want to really have a crack and not just make up the numbers.

“Nick Millar is one who’s having a really big pre-season.

“He was hampered last year with an ankle injury which meant we didn’t see the best of him but he’s fit now, he’s recovered from his ankle and he’s leading the way in fitness.

“I’m really excited to see how he goes while fully fit this season.

“Another one is Matt Gillham, our captain, who always leads the way at training. I’m excited to see him with another year under his belt playing hooker, his game just keeps going to another level.

“Bailey Lennox had a big year for us last year straight out of the 18s and got rookie of the year for Group Four and I’m excited to see him really get stuck in this season with a year under his belt.

“Dylan O’Brien played five-eight for us last year but was hampered a bit with work and a new baby.

“He’s been getting stuck in and this year will be his last year so he’s going out with a bang.

While not confirmed as of yet, the Kangaroos are expecting to play several pre-season trial games in the coming months.

Former player Juhnke is expected to bring Newcastle-based side West Wallsend, which he coaches, to Boggabri for a game, and Moree is also expected to play a match at Jubilee Oval against Boggabri.

There is also talks of a Roos road trip with a pre-season game against Raymond Terrace being organised.

The club is also expecting to be a part of the Jack Woolaston nines pre-season tournament.

Meanwhile the Kangaroos’ ladies’ league tag side has lost a key player ahead of the 2020 campaign, with speedster Cassidy Morley departing the club to pursue a career in the army.

Club president Greg Haire said that she was a significant loss.

“We’ve lost Cass which is going to be a big loss,” Haire said.

“She’s going to the army and she’ll be a big loss because she was probably our best player.

“But we already have a new signing who is Craig Summers’ daughter Ashlyn.”

Haire said that anyone considering playing rugby league or ladies’ league tag in 2020 was welcome to attend Boggabri Kangaroos’ pre-season training at Jubilee Oval.

“Pop along and have a look, come and have a run, we go back to the club and have a bit of a snack afterwards whether its some sausages or rissoles or a bit of Chinese,” Haire said.

“We are a very positive club and we are very welcoming.

“We have a great committee too, I think we have the best part of 30 on the committee this year.”