“60 years of anything is special”: Mick Coffey

By Mick Coffey – president, Narrabri Rugby Club

If it’s 60 years of something that is a cherished part of the community social fabric, that generates true emotion, that creates a sense of belonging and embodies much of what people need as part of their lives to keep their wheels turning so to speak, then it’s extra special and deserves celebrating!

Rugby does that, and at the Blue Boars we reckon we do it really well.

It’s more than ever a game that caters for everyone, both on and off the field. Big or little, tall or short, male or female, old or young and anything else, there’s a role for you that will deliver you as much or as little as you like based on how much you put into it.

That’s why in our 60th year we have celebrated, and continue to do so this weekend.

2024 has seen our club put a lot in on and off the field. As a result, this coming Saturday we are hosting the Central North grand final at Dangar Park.

The weather forecast is good, and the crowd numbers are expected to be strong.

Our committee along with some very dedicated volunteers are all working hard so things on the day run smoothly and everyone can enjoy themselves.

Our women’s team are defending their 2023 10s premiership when they take on the Tamworth Pirates in the first game of the day at 11.20am. The ladies were minor premiers for the year, and we look forward to seeing them play on Saturday as they strive to become the first women’s team in the Central North to win back-to-back titles.

Good luck girls, coach Mitch Creighton will have you firing with both barrels – we’re all behind you.

While our reserve grade side saw their season finish after a tough loss to the Tamworth Pirates in the minor semi-final, their year must still be considered a success.

The team’s coaches Nathan Nott and Greg Melton made sure that week in and week out the reserve grade team fronted up and played footy, doing the Blue Boars proud.

It was a great sight to see, when at the minor semi-final, the players who weren’t selected in the match day team still showed up to Tamworth to support, and all brought their kit bags just in case something changed, and they were needed to play.

Anyone who saw captain-coach Nathan Nott after full-time of that game now knows all too well the personification of the line from our club song “brave, courageous and bold oh so bold”.

Well done reggies men, we are proud of you.

First grade will run out at 3pm to contest the Heath Shield against the old foe, the Moree Bulls.

There’s probably not a better script to write to close out the 60th year than this one.

The coaching of Craig Gleeson, along with Michael Cain, will have them ready to go and you will most certainly see the best that bush rugby has to offer in this game.

We wish first grade all the best, you’ll certainly hear us loud and proud all afternoon.

Successful years such as this do not just happen, there are many pieces to the puzzle that require slotting in to get the outcomes we seek.

Our sponsors are big pieces, huge pieces in fact, and without their loyal support and generosity, we simply wouldn’t have the capacity to operate the way we do.

Rugby, even in the bush, costs a lot to run with significant overheads, which rapidly stack up in the post-pandemic, bureaucratic world we live in.

We consider our sponsors a huge part of the Narrabri Blue Boars family and hope to see plenty of them there enjoying themselves on Saturday.

We’d ask everyone to take notice of the fence signs, the logos on the club’s shorts and jerseys, on jackets and everywhere else and commit these businesses to memory so you can shop or do business there so that those who support us, are in turn supported.

Thank you to all our marvellous sponsors for all that you do for the Blue Boars!

Without all of our members and supporters, we wouldn’t have the strong soul we do, and it’s been a great year of support at both home and away games. Thank you for your passion and commitment, it’s not lost on the players – they appreciate it.

We know you’ll enjoy Saturday; a big reason we’re there is your support which drives success.

Every club needs volunteers. These people are the heart and soul of things, and they make sure all the details are covered off and things actioned as required.

To try to thank everyone who helps out would almost certainly see someone unintentionally not mentioned so it’s best to say – thank you to everyone who helps out in our club, in any capacity – we truly appreciate your efforts and are grateful for the time you are able to give us. Many hands make light work, and the saying most definitely rings true at our club!

Make sure you all enjoy yourselves on Saturday, you’ve done a wonderful job, so you deserve to take it all in and appreciate your work.

On grand final day we will have some commemorative blue t-shirts available – please buy one to put on so our clubhouse and hill is a ‘sea of blue’ for our players to run out to, and also join us in the player tunnels for our team. Let’s give this everything.

The curtain will soon close on the 60th year of the Blue Boars.

From our humble beginnings to now, it’s mind-boggling to contemplate what the 120th anniversary will look like in another 60 years!

There aren’t the words, at least not from this pen, which could do a vote of thanks and appreciation for all those special people who have built our club over 60 years justice, so I’ll close with this – be proud, our club means something slightly different to everyone for all the right reasons.

You have played a role in that and that is special, so thank you.