AUSTRALIAN RULES
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They have already won five of the last eight titles, and this weekend the Bathurst Bushrangers’ quest for another Central West AFL reserve grade premiership will take another major step when they take on the Parkes Panthers.
The two sides will meet in Orange in the major semi-final, with the winner to progress to the grand final while the loser will get another chance to qualify by beating the winner of tomorrow’s Young vs Orange match.
So far in 2015 Parkes have proven almost the equal of Bathurst and in the end it was only a superior percentage for the Bushrangers that gave them the minor premiership.
Young was also in the mix and they, too, were only relegated to third by percentage.
Though their second clash saw Bathurst cruise to a 67-point win, either side of that meeting Parkes managed to scrape home by five points, while they demolished their opposition by 55 in their most recent match last month.
Everything points to a good contest on neutral territory tomorrow.
“The reserve grade competition has been close throughout the year and really there hasn’t been much at any stage between the top three sides, Young were right up there, too,” Bathurst co-coach Steve Grundy said.
“Parkes probably had the wood on us, they won two of the three matches and even in that third game in Cowra where we beat them, they were missing some regulars and we were too, so we ended up with a few first graders playing that day. It probably wasn’t a reflection of where Parkes stand.
“In our last meeting they absolutely put us to the sword, so it is going to be a tough ask. But they are a big side who move the ball well, I’m hoping that on a smaller ground in Orange our speed might be able to give us a bit of an edge.”
Unlike the first grade major semi-final where the loser will be almost certain to make it through the preliminary final and into the decider anyway, the same can’t be said for reserve grade.
With the sides so closely matched, it is vital to earn a direct passage to the grand final rather than risk bowing out in straight sets.
“We would definitely prefer to get straight through. If we lose we play either Young or Orange, probably Young, and that would be a tough game. We’ve got a good tradition of success in this grade and I want us to keep that going,” Grundy said.
“As always with a reserves team the line-up has chopped and changed week to week, but there are a few guys who will be particularly important to us. Kieran Ball at centre half-back has been excellent all year.
“Mick Phillips at centre half-forward has had a cracking season, and though he isn’t as mobile as he used to be, Brian Matheson at full-forward has been very important to us.
“James Kennedy in the ruck is probably the other one who has been very consistent. All those key position guys will be important to us again on the weekend.”
Tomorrow’s match gets underway at 12.45pm.