HUNTER will make up the majority of this year’s Corellas squad after impressing selectors with a dominant, undefeated country championship campaign at Endeavour Oval on Saturday.
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Hunter makes up all bar five of the spots in this year’s 23-strong squad set to tackle Sydney in Terrigal this weekend, and Corellas co-coach Dave Cleal said the cold conditions didn’t deter the women’s rugby powerhouse.
“As they are every year, Hunter were very strong. They’re impressive,” Cleal said.
“Obviously the conditions made it a little bit difficult; the ball didn’t get shifted wide very often and there weren’t many clean line-outs because the ball was like a cake of soap but the girls did their best.
“Hunter have dominated the squad, though, as they’ve done the last few years.”
Aside from a tough loss to Hunter, Central West defeated a depleted Central North in its only other game.
But prop Krystal Fyee (Cowra), blindside breakaway Sherlee Logan (Cowra), No.8 Inga Visser (Cowra), inside-centre Litisha Boney (Dubbo) and fullback Jessica Skadding (CSU Bathurst) all impressed to earn Corellas jumpers out of the championship.
Cleal, who’ll co-coach the NSW Country women alongside Orange City mentor Steve Hamson, said the home side wasn’t without its highlights.
“The Central West scrum was very impressive,” he said.
“They showed lots of courage. They’d only had one training session together and a few of them, it was their first game of rugby. They were keen to learn which is good to see.”
After NSW Country tackles Sydney this weekend at Terrigal, the Corellas line-up against ACT in western Sydney on a day that’ll see the NSW Country colts, women and senior sides all play on the one day at the one venue.
As big an occasion as that’ll be, Cleal, however, said his side’s first focus was Sydney.
“We’ve got to try and minimise Sydney somehow,” Cleal said.
“They’ve got 90 per cent of the Wallaroos backline in their side.”