Not only will Bathurst need a win over Parkes at George Park 1 to keep their hopes of a finals appearance alive but they will need Dubbo to do them a favour by overcoming Cowra in their top-of-the-table clash.

With the result of one of those matches obviously out of his team’s control Bathurst captain Jameel Qureshi is focused on keeping a determined Parkes squad under control.

Parkes’ position at the foot of the WZPL ladder is deceptive given they went close to securing a win over Orange in the previous round.

“We’re all looking forward to it because Parkes always puts up a great contest and punches above their weight,” Qureshi said.

“They’ve got the man who I’d consider the most dangerous player in the entire zone, Anthony Heraghty.

“The Smith boys [Miles and Blake] are big competitors and they’re always ones to watch. They’re a great team.

“What’s great about this competition is that there’s someone in every team who can win the game.

“If anything, Parkes losing their match against Dubbo is a dangerous sign for us because they will definitely be looking to come good towards the end of this season.”

Bathurst’s premier league title defence has been heavily interrupted by the rain, playing just two matches.

A loss over Dubbo and a narrow win over Orange are all Bathurst has to its name, and it has left them in a tricky position this Sunday.

Dubbo cannot be knocked out of the top two but Bathurst, being just four points behind Cowra, are the only team who can be a disruption.

Orange are level on points with Bathurst but their final round bye has taken them out of the finals equation.

“Every year the rain will play its part in all competitions. We put ourselves in this position so it’s up to us to get ourselves out of it,” Qureshi said.

“Dubbo beat us in the first round and there were a few things for us to take out of that game for where we could improve.

“We didn’t play our best but we weren’t far away from them. Unfortunately being not too far away from them isn’t good enough to win games.”

The match start is 10am.

BATHURST: Jameel Qureshi ©, Ryan Peacock (vc), Nic Broes, Connor Slattery, Ben Parsons, Adam Ryan, Josh Toole, Matt Stephen, Jacob Bognuda, Henry Shoemark, Wayne Sellers, Dave Sellers