PLAY with pride, play with passion, play to represent the community, play to to win - that is the mission for the Wiradjuri Googars in the new Tribal League.
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Launched by the National Indigenous Rugby League Administration, the Tribal League will run over three consecutive weekends with the Wiradjuri Googars one of six men's teams fighting it out for a share of a $100,000 prize pool.
A bulk of the Wiradjuri squad trained at Bathurst's Carrington Park on Saturday morning to prepare for what they expect to be stiff competition.
While there won't be the vast number of players that the annual NSW Koori Knockout - a tournament which had its 50th anniversary edition postponed until 2021 due to COVID-19 - regularly attracts, the teams which have signed up for the Tribal League will be talent packed.
The Wiradjuri Googars will square off against the Newcastle Hawks, Wellington Castlereagh All Blacks, Coastal Connections, Redfern All Blacks and Walgett Aboriginal Connection.
"There are six teams, normally we have 64 teams at the knockout, so you can imagine condensing 64 into six, you've got the best players from the state in six teams," Googars spokesperson Roy Ah-See said.
"Pride, passion and commitment for their people, for their community, that's what it is about.
"It's going to awesome, we didn't have the knockout this year so they're dying for rugby league. It's going to be exciting, the boys are really, really keen, you can feel it, once these guys get together you don't have to say anything, you can feel the passion they have.
"I have to take my hat off to Benny Gunn for backing this, all his resources and sponsors who have helped out, without Benny's support there's a big chance this playing group wouldn't have come together.
"He did that on the proviso we're competitive, we're not just there to make up the sixth team, we're here to win it."
It's about making sure that we play as one side, that we play for our people, our community and represent our people in a positive light.
- Roy Ah-See
The 30-man squad which Gunn has put together will be guided by himself and Bathurst Panthers talent Jeremy Gordon, while Kurt Hancock also assisted with the training session at Carrington Park.
The players included Group 10 talents such as Bathurst Panthers' centre Blake Lawson, Group 11 faces like Claude Gordon and a whole host of Peacheys.
"There's a mixture of players from all over the place, at the end of the day you'll find that a lot of the NRL players come from those communities, the stepping stone is the Group 11s, the Group 10s, the South Coast, North Coast, country rugby league," Ah-See said.
"We've got guys like young Claude Gordon junior, we've got the Peachey boys - Tyrone Peachey, his brother Lachlan Peachey, Derick Peachey, Wade Peachey.
"It's a pretty well balanced team, there are not a lot of big egos in the side, which I think is great. What we do off the field will shine on the field."
Tyrone Peachey, the Wellington native who boasts more than 150 NRL games, was not able to attend the training session in Bathurst, but is excited about what lies ahead.
"I've got a few family members who are playing, so it's always good to play with them. It's going to be a good competition I think," he said.
The opening round of the Tribal League will be held at Dubbo's Apex Oval on Saturday, November 7, with the Googars to meet Wellington in their first match before playing Coastal Connections later in the afternoon.
A week later at Gosford's Central Coast Stadium they'll meet the Redfern All Blacks and Walgett Aboriginal Connection before facing Newcastle at Campbelltown on November 2 and hopefully contesting the grand final that evening.
"It's a big commitment, it's three weekends. We start at Dubbo then we head up to the Central Coast and end up at Campbelltown, so it is a big commitment from the boys but each one of them put their hand up and said they know what it's going to take," Ah-See said.
"It's about making sure that we play as one side, that we play for our people, our community and represent our people in a positive light. The boys want to win it."
