A STAR basketballer, a man with a host of rugby union experience and two league players walk onto George Park.
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It's not the opening line of a joke, but instead the story of the Bathurst Bushrangers' new recruits for the 2020 AFL Central West season.
While a number of sporting competitions have been cancelled this season as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, the Bushrangers will field three senior men's teams across the two-tier AFLCW competition.
It made the Bushrangers and Australian rules an option for those who normally spend winter playing other sports.
It's an option that has been taken up by the likes of St Pat's rugby league players Luke Single and Jacob Parslow as well Ben McNiven, a man best know for playing rugby union with Bathurst Bulldogs, CSU and most recently Parkes.
Former Bathurst Goldminers captain Kieran Osborne is another who is looking to the Bushrangers for his sporting fix.
"Obviously it's just another option, for league players in particular, for those who don't have a competition to play in. That's what we've promoted, now we've got three senior men's teams, we've got something for everyone," Bushrangers president Alex Sparks said.
"Hopefully it's a nice attractive proposition for those who want to play.
"It's nice to have these new recruits, it's nice to have them with a Bushrangers jersey on. It's great to be an option for people because they are competitive beasts, they want to win, so why not get them involved?"
Get involved is exactly what they did on Saturday at George Park as the Bushrangers conducted an intra-club trial to prepare for the rapidly approaching start of the season on July 18.
Though they still have to learn some of the nuances of the new sport, Sparks was impressed by what he saw and feels Parslow, Single, Osborn and McNiven will all be assets to the Bushrangers.
"Luke, I don't think he's played Aussie rules before, but bloody hell he played well on Saturday. He is a really nice guy and has got a lot of connections to the club, he's a guy who will pick it up with ease I'd say," Sparks said.
"We've also got Jacob Parslow, he gave me an absolute bath, he marked up on me. We have Ben McNiven as well, he's a union boy who is coming to play and he had an outstanding game in the back line.
"We had Kieran Osborn have his first game as well, he's a basketballer and he's an exceptional athlete. For him to have that 360 vision, he'll be able to pick up the game really, really quickly. It will be a great introduction for him into the game.
"He got thrown into the ruck and did a really good job. Obviously it is a big learning curve for him, but he's just a competitor and did a really great job."
Sparks feels that not only does the sporting background of his new recruits mean that should adjust quickly to being a Bushranger, but that they could also pass on some pointers.
"You can teach someone how to handball and kick, but you can't necessarily teach athleticism straight off the bat and how to read a game ... they have that," he said. "They've played a lot of football so they can contribute, teach us how to tackle better."
