NSW COUNTRY EAGLES

by Paul Cook –

The NSW Country Eagles will draw players from across the state whilst also utilising an affiliation with the Randwick and Eastern Suburbs clubs based in Sydney. They will take their home games around New South Wales – to Sydney, Lismore, Orange and Dubbo – in order to engage with as many rugby lovers in the bush as possible.

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THE SQUAD:

WALLABIES: Adam Ashley-Cooper, Sekope Kepu, Matt Toomua, Nic White

SUPER RUGBY REPRESENTATIVES: Matt Carraro, Mitchell Chapman, Kane Douglas, Tala Gray, Stephen Hoiles, David Horwitz, Brendan McKibbin (all NSW WARATAHS), Patrick Dellit, Chris Tuatara-Morrison (both WESTERN FORCE), Josh Mann-Rea (BRUMBIES), Max Lahiff (REBELS)

FORWARDS: Michael Alaalatoa, Duncan Chubb, Sam Croke, Ryan Dalziel, Ben Matwijow, Tim Metcher, Ben Suisala, Cam Treloar, Pauli Tuala, Ita Vaea, Will Weekes

BACKS: Darcy Etrich, Ethan Ford, John Grant, Andrew Kellaway, Apakuki Maafu, Will Miller, Misieli Sinoti, Mick Snowden, Ed Stubbs, Malakai Watene-Zelezniak, Sam Windsor

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THE COACH:

Darren Coleman is the man entrusted with bringing together a squad of players from all four corners of Australian rugby to play with one common purpose, representing the ‘bush’. A country man himself, Coleman grew up in Kempsey before moving to the city to play Shute Shield rugby for five seasons with Easts, Norths and Newcastle Wildfires. Since his move into the coaching ranks, he has built-up an extensive CV from time spent in Italy, Canada and Japan, as well as stints in charge of both the NSW Waratahs and ACT Brumbies academies. He is another coach with previous experience of a national competition, having been an assistant with the title winning Central Coast Rays back in the 2007 ARC. He is passionate about the opportunity to take top quality rugby around the state, while building a team capable of causing more than a few ripples in this competition.

Why does Australian rugby need the NRC?

“It’s good for a few reasons. The financial side with the extra content for TV and all the broadcasting rights being one and from a player development point of view, I think it allows Super Rugby players who don’t get much game time or haven’t developed into Wallabies to develop better through playing another eight to 10 games than they would from pre-season training. Most importantly, it’s great for the Super franchises to get a look at the up and coming talent and how they compare in a more professional and competitive environment.”

How excited are you about the potential of this competition?

“Everyone’s really excited about it. Although it may seem hastily arranged, we’ve been working on our team for five months now and it will be good to finally see a ball kicked in anger. If the players are a quarter as excited as I am then you’ll have a pretty enthusiastic group in game one.”

It’s also as important in terms of grooming and growing potential coaches as it is players isn’t it?

“You’d like to think so. It’s funny with coaching, people take a lot of different pathways to get to where they want to go. You think you’re almost there and then things don’t quite go your way and you end up back at the bottom and you start again so, for me it’s a great opportunity. I’ve been an assistant coach with Super Rugby and a head coach at club level so it’s a great opportunity to prove my worth as a head coach at that notch above club level.”

Do you feel the pressure to entertain with the Eagles?

“There is a pressure to entertain but first and foremost you’re looking to win. I think with the whole new points scoring system, you’re going to be forced to entertain and you’re going to be forced to chase tries and my impression is that it will be a rarity that you take penalty goals.”

Eagles Coaching Team: Head coach Darren Coleman (centre)
flanked by assistants Mark Giacheri (L) and Shannon Fraser (R)

What’s the key ingredient to getting a buy-in from supporters for the Rams? Style, success, interaction with your (potential) fan base?

“Probably a combination of all three. Our media guy is doing a great job in terms of interaction via editorials either written or through video but everyone wants to see a winner. You’ll gain support there and as Michael Cheika has shown with the Waratahs, if you can combine those wins with a good brand of footy, you’ll get people coming in from everywhere.”

How hard has it been trying to get this project off the ground with a club rugby season in full swing?

“I won’t hide from the fact that it’s been the most difficult recruitment process that I’ve ever done. There’s just no black and white, you can’t just get a player and then go and sign him, you had to wait to hear back from Super players and Super players couldn’t sign any contracts so you never really knew if you had them committed or not. Because the Super Rugby franchises are their main employers, you’re pretty much at their beck and call about their availability and with the Waratahs progressing so far through the finals series, it affected all four of the New South Wales NRC teams’ preparations. On top of that, the Waratahs toured with a Sevens side and then we had the weather we’ve had this week so yeah, you definitely wouldn’t call the preparation ideal.”

Despite the obstacles, recruitment appears to have gone well with a roster of top names, many of whom have country backgrounds. Was that an important box to tick?

“Definitely. My investors wanted to get to that 60-70% of our squad being of country origin and we’ve hit that target so it’s been about finding that balance between satisfying the investors and putting together a squad of genuine talent. Me being a country guy myself it was important too but we also had to provide a clear pathway for our Randwick and Easts players who have an association with this team. Also, if we found ourselves short in a certain position, we went outside our three main catchment areas to find players and we’ve needed to do that in a few different positions but overall, we’re pretty happy with what we’ve come up with. We won’t have too many on deck for round one unfortunately but they’ll trickle back in during the season.”

How many training sessions have you had with the Eagles?

“We had a three day camp down in Wollongong last week which was good, not only for the on-field stuff but for the team bonding aspect of it. We only took about 70% of our 33 man squad with the Waratahs’ Sevens boys away and our 23 man squad for round one will have their first actual training session together two days before round one kicks-off so, I don’t think we’ve had the worst preparation but we haven’t had the best either.”

Ben Matwijow is a perfect example of the kind of player that the NRC should be benefitting. A standout club player, he just needs the chance to show his wares consistently at a higher level

The Country Eagles have a unique point of difference with the other sides in the NRC in that you won’t have a fixed abode, you’ll be playing at a different venue for every week of the competition. Do you expect that to play out as an advantage given the parochial support you can expect around the state or a disadvantage due to the tyranny of distance and travel you will incur across the competition as a result?

“We feel it’s an advantage. We’re really confident that when we get out to these rural areas we’re going to have a big following who will be pretty enthusiastic having not seen too much high level rugby. Wherever we go, we’re always going to have boys returning home as well which is a great bonus, particularly for our country origin players that have based themselves in Sydney for their rugby. They’re really excited about getting a game in front of their family and friends at home.”

Compared to the Sydney based sides who are representing a select band of teams or one geographical area of the city, the Eagles are actually representing a whole state. Does that create a unique bond in this squad?

“I think so and when you throw in a couple of boys like Mikey Alaalatoa and Ryan Dalziel from West Harbour and Max Lahiff from the Rebels who’s actually an Englishman, we are a bit of a unique group. Although we’ve really pushed the country theme and a good majority of our team is from there, we’re also mindful and respectful of the fact that we have other backgrounds and other cultures in our group and it can be quite a special rugby experience when you bring people from different rugby backgrounds with a unity of purpose, it’s good fun.”

Are you confident of a pretty competitive year first time out?

“Like any coach, we can talk about this new season and the lack of preparation and whatnot but ultimately, as a football coach and as a football team you’re judged on your results so we want to be competitive and we’re shooting for the play-offs like everyone else.”

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THE CAPTAIN:

Matt Carraro returned to Australian shores last year after four successful seasons in Europe. A former Randwick, Canberra Vikings, ACT Brumbies and NSW Waratahs player, the utility back spent three seasons in the English Premiership with Bath before a move to French Top 14 side Montpellier in 2013. Lured home by Michael Cheika and the promise of a team that was going places, Carraro donned the Cambridge Blue of his home state once again in 2014, featuring 12 times and coming up with a couple of crucial tries and plays to help the Tahs towards their maiden Super Rugby title. Carraro hails from Gosford.

How exciting is it to be a part of a new competition and a founder member and captain of a new team?

“I think that’s something I only really thought about earlier this week, that it is a brand new team. The last national competition, the ARC, was quite successful playing wise, we all thought, but unfortunately, not financially so it didn’t continue. But the ARU are definitely going to keep this thing going so hopefully it will turn into a bit of a Currie Cup or ITM Cup and continues on and yeah, we’re lucky enough to be the first players to represent the Eagles so it is pretty exciting.”

What does the NRC mean for rugby players in Australia?

“The best thing about it is for all the young guys coming through, they’re the ones that are going to get the most out of it and they’re the ones that are going to be the most hungry to play well because at the end of it, their target is a Super Rugby contract. It’s a great thing for the states to be able to view a whole lot more players at a higher level than they can in club rugby. It’s not Super Rugby but it’s the next step up in between.”

Given the amount of game time you got at Super Rugby level with the Waratahs this season, this is a terrific opportunity for you to get some top level footy under your belt for next year isn’t it?

“It is. I was under no illusions at the start of this year, I didn’t think I’d get as much game time as I did, I actually think I did quite well out of it but obviously, a comp like this gives us the next step up from club footy and the step below Super Rugby and guys like myself are going to get a lot of game time out of it. Also, being a bit older I can take more of a leadership role whereas, with the Waratahs, I’m at the bottom of that chain so that’s a good opportunity for me as well.”

Matt Carraro made a successful return to Australian rugby this year, helping the Waratahs to their maiden Super Rugby title in his second stint at Moore Park

Thursday night matches, Sunday afternoon matches, state/interstate derbies every week, a whole host of new venues and some different laws to play under. It’s going to be a bit out of the box isn’t it?

“I think we’ve got a Monday night game thrown in there as well at Leichhardt Oval so there’ll be a few short turnarounds and a few long breaks and it’ll be interesting that way. It will definitely be taxing I think, especially with our team playing our games out in the country so we’ve got a bit of extra travel in there as well. It’s lucky that we’ve got big squads and every team has a shadow squad as well and even though it’s a short comp it’s coming at the end of a long year and there will be plenty of tired bodies out there so I think we’ll go through some players too.”

Compared to the Sydney based sides who are representing a select band of teams or one geographical area of the city, the Eagles are actually representing a whole state. How exciting is it to be taking rugby out to the bush and to people that maybe don’t get to see top level footy very often?

“That’s the beauty of this competition. The last one (the ARC), they tried to take it to a few different locations and it probably didn’t pay off that well but I think if you take it to a country town we should be able to draw massive crowds. The amount of effort those guys go to just to get to training and the amount of hours they put in, in terms of away games, that’s serious travel, not like we do in Sydney. If they’re willing to do that to play rugby, I’m sure they’ll come out and support us from anywhere.”

Which of the law changes or refereeing interpretations are you happiest to see adopted?

“I think it will be interesting with the way they’ve changed the points for the penalties. People have been calling for that for a long time so that’s going to be good for the game. We’ve also been discussing the way the maul will be refereed where they’re trying to discourage the ‘choke tackle’. They’re saying you can’t pull it to ground anymore as the defender to effect a turnover, it could be a penalty against you, so we’ll see how that pans out but it’s going to be tough to judge.

“I think the quick throw (Quick throw-ins allowed even if touched by another player or person but must be the same ball) will have the biggest impact on the game and the attacking team has got to form a lineout as well so you can’t get sneaky around that anymore and walk in slowly, you’ve always got to be on your guard. That should definitely speed the game up and catch people out in defence which will break the game wide open.”

How competitive do you think this Eagles side can be?

“I expect us to be quite competitive. Obviously, this week is going to be tough on us because we’ve got eight Super Rugby guys out and you put those guys back in the mix and it’s a pretty strong team so, barring injuries I think we’ll do quite well. We don’t know what kind of toll the travel will take on us but I guess all the teams have got to do something similar and it depends how we adapt to the new laws and interpretations as well. It will be an interesting opening weekend given our injury list but I think in the long run, we’ll be quite competitive.”

If you don’t go on to win the comp, what do you want to be able to look back and say in 10 weeks time?

“For us to win it, it’s going to be difficult and I think a fair few people have written us off already so we’ve just got to put something out on the field that we’re proud of. A lot of people have put a lot of time and a lot of money to get this team up and running and I think we’re very lucky to have the guys that have come together behind us and formed the Eagles. We just want to make them proud and make all the country rugby players proud. It’s about playing with heart and determination and if the outcome comes, it comes but we’ve got to put something out there that we can be proud of as well.”

Check out nswcountryeagles.com/ for more info…