BACK ON BOARD: Shane Rampling to coach the Boggabri Kangaroos’ first grade side again

Boggabri and District Rugby League Football Club are already eyeing off the 2024 season and have locked in their first grade coach, with Shane Rampling to return for a sixth season at the helm.

Rampling joined the club back in 2018 for the Kangaroos’ maiden year in the top division, and since then, the small-town team has improved under his watch year on year.

They are yet play finals footy though, despite showing in patches during the past few seasons that they can match it with the best of the teams in the competition.

Rampling told The Courier that he was thrilled to get the chance to coach again at a club that he holds so close to his heart.

“I’m going around again,” Rampling said.

“The main goal now is to get the team into the finals. Every year we’ve improved, and we’re not far off where we need to be.

“With a bit of recruitment and a bit of luck during the season, hopefully we will get there.

“It’s a fantastic club here; one of the best club I’ve ever been involved in.

“They love their footy and there is no drama or politics at the committee level. Everyone is there for the right reasons and to see success, on and off the field.

“They let me do my job as a coach and they back me. They’re 100 per cent behind me. It’s brilliant.

“The people at Boggabri love their footy, and it’s great being a part of the club.

“I’d be so proud if we could get to the semis and give it a real good shake.”

Boggabri Kangaroos president Greg Haire was thrilled Rampling would be back in 2024.

“He’s a fantastic coach and a great bloke,” Haire said.

“He’s as honest as the day is long and just a terrific fella.

“He’s not only just our coach, he’s on the committee and he has a fair bit of input in the club too.

“While ever he wants to do it, while ever I’m in charge, it’s there for him.

“Stability counts for a lot, I think.

“We have been stable and we’ve been building, and we are going to keep building over this next year.”

Rampling is hopeful of retaining the majority of the senior squad from this year’s campaign, and said the club was in talks to bring a few new players into the fold for 2024.

The Boggabri Kangaroos will hold a few training sessions later in the year in the lead-up to Christmas before getting into pre-season training early next year in January.

The club is currently advertising for reserve grade, under-18s and ladies’ league coaches for 2024, and applications for those close midway through next month.

The Kangaroos’ AGM is scheduled for Sunday, October 22, and Haire said that he expected the club’s large committee to grow even larger ahead of a highly-anticipated 2024 season.

It will be one of the club’s biggest yet, with Boggabri to field junior teams that are set to line up in Narrabri and District Junior Rugby League’s 2024 campaign after positive talks between the two clubs.

Haire said that Boggabri would field two teams in the under-5/6 age group, two in the under-7/8 age group, one team in the under-9/10 division and hopefully a team in the under-11/12 division as well.

“Hopefully we can get a couple of home games for the juniors too, and their games can flow on to the senior games,” Haire said.

“For a proud little town, that would be enormous, especially after having no football before 2013 as well. There was none.

“It would be fantastic.”

Haire and Rampling said they were fairly confident that the club would field an 18s team in the 2024 Group 4 Rugby League campaign as well.

The first grade coach was pleased to welcome junior teams, especially an under-18s side, which he said would all help secure the club’s future.

“We’re really working hard behind the scenes to get an under-18s side,” Rampling said.

“I think that’s the missing piece to our jig-saw for the club, an under-18s team.

“It will give the young kids that are playing for Boggi next year something to strive for, and it would be fantastic from a senior standpoint, to have some players who will be there and getting ready to step up to play first and reserve grade.

“Any players out there interested in playing under-18s, get in touch with the club.”