Narrabri Rugby Club ready to host a super rugby festival at Dangar Park

The staging of the Santos Festival of Rugby at Narrabri is a community event ‘at just the right time’ says Narrabri Rugby Club president Mick Coffey.

The Dangar Park venue is at peak readiness as the hosts prepare to welcome thousands of participants and spectators for the three-day festival which kicks off today and features tomorrow night’s clash between Super Rugby teams the Queensland Reds and the NSW Waratahs.

The timing is right, said Mick Coffey, as the community continues to recover from drought and COVID-19 restrictions are eased.

“Dangar Park has been meticulously prepared and with two inches of rain on Monday night the playing field is looking fantastic,” Mick said.

“You can almost smell the grass growing. We wouldn’t have scripted it better.

“There might be ‘only’ 3000 people at Dangar Park on Friday night, but the excitement will be bigger than 15,000 spectators in the city.

“The atmosphere is going to be electric – people are going to love it.”

The Reds versus Waratahs game tomorrow night will be played under the newly-installed TV broadcast quality lights.

Grandstand seating for 3000 spectators has been erected and a national audience will see the game live streamed on Cluch TV.

The new ground lighting, funded by a Santos Voluntary Planning Agreement with Narrabri Shire Council, will be a permanent fixture.

The development of Dangar Park is an asset for the wider shire community.

“People may perceive that the rugby club is the main beneficiary, and in the immediate sense we are, but longer term the whole shire is going to reap the rewards of this for years and years,” said Mick.

“Look forward to 12 months, it could be rugby league, hockey, darts tournaments – you name it, we can stage it in Narrabri.”

In fact, The Santos Festival of Rugby and accompanying upgrades to Dangar Park will provide flow on benefits for years to come.

“Our hope and expectation is to stage such a great event, with the facilities we now have, with Narrabri Shire Council’s support of the grounds and the lights, that we are now a preferred destination for rural and regional events,” said Mick.

“We may not be a regional city, a Wagga, Dubbo or Tamworth, but have the top facilities and will prove we can stage a seamless weekend with accommodation, catering and everything that goes with a fixture like this – Narrabri will be the place to come.

“We have done this with limited preparation, there was basically four weeks shutdown of support businesses over the Christmas/New Year holiday period and the COVID restrictions.

“If we can stage an event like this with all those challenges in front of us, let’s look forward to future fixtures – there are many opportunities.

“We will now be even more on the map as a destination venue.”

Across the next three days, a galaxy of former and current stars of rugby union in Australia from the Wallabies to state teams accompanied by senior personnel from rugby union administration nationally are in town.

“We will have the top representatives from state and national level in Narrabri,” said Coffey.

“It’s a ‘who’s who’ of rugby union.”

The three-day festival will get underway shortly, with the Queensland Reds to host their captain’s run at Dangar Park this morning. The Waratahs will host theirs from 6pm this evening.

Festival organisers announced earlier today that those training sessions were no longer open to the public due to threats of vandalism.

“Due to threats of vandalism from protestors to the Dangar Park rugby field, we’ve had to close off public access to the captains runs at 9.30am and 6pm today, and move the kids coaching clinic to Collins Park, Narrabri, which is scheduled to run from 4.30pm. We share your disappointment and frustration but reassure you that all other ticketed events will remain unchanged at this time,” a statement read.