THE late Ken Laird was a man who had a huge passion for rugby union, but even he would have understood it on Saturday when two of the clubs which held a special place in his heart had to cancel their matches.
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The Bathurst Bulldogs were set to host the Dubbo Kangaroos at Ashwood Park in round six of the Blowes Cup - a day of rugby which saw not only competition points up for grabs, but the Ken Laird Trophy.
Laird, who died in 2017, was a life member of both the Bulldogs and the Kangaroos. It means that holding the piece of silverware which carries his name is something both clubs are always hungry to do.
However, with snow falling across the region on Saturday - not to mention rain and wind gusts of up to 60km/hr - in the interests of player safety the games were called off.
"It's disappointing, we were looking forward to trying to get the Ken Laird Trophy back," Bulldogs first grade coach Matt McRobert said.
"These things happen, it's a winter sport and unfortunately snow comes into it now and then.
"As a club we understand Dubbo's concerns about driving, we've got players in Oberon and it would have been dangerous for them to travel too. So while we're disappointed, we understand that these are not normal circumstances."
Decided on results from across all grades, Dubbo took possession of the trophy in round one as they made a clean sweep of the games. The Roos' first XV won 31-19 over Bulldogs, second grade won a 17-15 nail-biter and the Dubbo women downed Bathurst 36-21.
The Bulldogs were determined to make amends at Ashwood Park.
"We had a good preparation, we were looking forward to playing Dubbo, we always enjoy playing them because it is a club we have a long rivalry with. It doesn't sit well with Bulldogs that our Ken Laird title is sitting with Dubbo," McRobert said.
"We'll just have to wait another year I guess, or if things go right, we'll wait until the semi-final to play for it again."
Thinking about the big picture, while Bulldogs missed out on playing the Roos due to snow, McRobert knows they are fortunate to have a season at all given the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"From out point of view, for us it's just about keeping the game alive, keeping the players on the paddock and the club afloat," he said.
"If things go our way and we do things properly we might win games and we might win a premiership, but really COVID has made you appreciate what is really important about rugby.
"That's being together, playing the sport you love and that sense of camaraderie. It's been a real eye-opener for us in terms of the value of the sport."