Uralla’s Woodville Oval was the scene of the biggest Country Rugby League game of the year on Saturday afternoon. The 2011 Country Bulls v QLD Outback clash was a powerful game of league for the duration, but score-wise, the men from Country NSW were dominant, claiming a whopping 48 to 8 victory over their far-flung foes.
There were four local Northern Inland NSW players in the victorious representative side: Mitch Porter (Inverell Hawks); Damian Petrie (Tenterfield Tigers); Nick Doig (now in Parkes but formerly of Inverell); and Nick Dawson (Tingha Tigers).
“It obviously means a great deal to represent Country NSW and we’ll carry memories from our time in Uralla with us for the rest of our lives,” said NSW Country Bulls Captain, Pat Rosser from Parkes. “There were no standouts. We pulled together well as a team. We trained three times a day in Uralla to make sure we did just that.”
The Maroons’ two tries were the first and the last of the game. Captain, Aaron Kuskey, said his bus trip from Mount Isa took about 30 hours.
Both sides arrived in Uralla earlier in the week, trained intensively, attempted to acclimatise and helped to support and promote the Uralla Tigers Rugby League Football Club, which has struggled of late. Tigers supporters appreciated the inspiration.
The town of Uralla enjoyed the economic impact of hosting the teams and was praised for its hospitality on game-day. Conditions were particularly wintry and, to the Outback Queenslanders, they were all but arctic, experiencing a light taste of snow soon after arrival.
Outback QLD’s Brent Kuskey got the first try of the game after 10 minutes. Mere moments later, Inverell’s Mitch Porter responded for the Country Bulls. Rowan Orcher from Coonamble crossed the line shortly after.
Jade Williams from Dubbo Macquarie scored a try for the Bulls. Then, it was Port City’s Glen Littler’s turn.
The strong, chilly breeze may have been a factor in the kicking. Adam Hall of Forbes was the first to nail a conversion. Pat Cronin from Gerringong got the Bulls’ next try and Adam Hall was again on target with the conversion. Jade Williams got his second try.
The half-time score saw the NSW Country Bulls ahead 28 points to 4, yet the Queensland captain said he still felt they could turn it around at that point.
NSW Bulls’ Rowan Orcher got another try to kick the try count off in the second half. Adam Hall converted.
Another Coonamble man, Louis Murphy, scored two consecutive tries for the Bulls, both of which went unconverted. Then, Mathew Ward from the Junee area got the last try, which was converted by Mitch Porter.
Story: Gary Fry
