For a start, most of your kicks to the ground's north-east corner have to avoid the overhanging branches from the near-by trees.

Anyone who's chased a seven-foot Eastern Grey Kangaroo, and his 50 mates, off Diggings Oval will tell you the same thing.

Never mind the sub-zero days at Blackheath, the odd night game at Kandos where car headlights boost the visibility or, of late, running into Ben Gosper's right shoulder, and then being put to bed on the Wade Park cricket pitch.

Mid-west footy, now known as the Wallerawang Landscaping Cup ahead of the 2020 season, is all about community.

Mates playing side-by-side to both enjoy each other's company and play a bit of footy on a Saturday - and if a stray elbow or swinging arm escapes the guise of the man in the middle, all the better.

You get square (hopefully don't get caught) and then laugh about it after the game.

But winning? Well, the two points at the end of the day is secondary, for most.

Second division footy is about giving blokes who aren't quite up to the level of a Group competition the chance to run out and participate in a game they love.

It's as vital to the game in country areas as the big-paying, top quality Group 11 and Group 10 premiership races are.

Last week we were able to confirm this year's Mid-west competition would go ahead, and while some clubs weren't able to commit, the bulk will play.

It's a boon for the sport in the region, especially with three major competitions opting to sit out 2020.

But in a bid to boost numbers, and in turn interest, the Mid-west board, which it must be noted falls under the governance of Group 10, has allowed a couple of extras to join the league.

Cargo is a Woodbridge Cup club while the Orange Raiders are forming to become the seventh side in the mid-west.

The list of players on the Raiders' hit list is impressive, to say the least. One was last season running amok in the Riverina's open side.

While Cargo is handy enough on its own under the coaching of Jared Brodrick, and they're keen to pick up a couple of other Molong or Manildra boys for a run too.

Then there's Oberon, a club in the mix to pick up a couple of old boys who had signed on to join Group 10 clubs after the Tigers decided to drop back a peg and contest the Mid-west Cup.

In theory the additions are brilliant.

Quality will, it's thought, become infectious and the standard of the competition will be greater than we've seen in a long, long time.

But the theory in Mid-west just doesn't exist.

Have a look at some of attempts at playing the ball ... these blokes idolise the Andrew Fifita tunnel ball.

It's all about practicality in the Mid-west.

And practically speaking, allowing some seriously talented players to flood the competition will only be detrimental to the league.

The bread-and-butter Mid-west footy player won't want to tackle a 140 kilogram representative prop with a full head of steam.

Sure, he might like to think he can, but in a practical sense the result will likely leave him flat-lining 10 metres out with a size 14 football-boot print on his forehead.

Add the speed of a Group 10 fullback to a Mid-west side and that player is untouchable.

In the end, the rusted on bush footy player who loves Mid-west, who has been playing with Kandos, or Portland, or Lithgow for most of their lives ... they'll walk away.

Clubs already float in and float out of this premiership race. It's the nature of it. Running a club in a small town is tough.

You know they'll be back. They just need the time.

But alter the fundamental principles of what the competition is all about and all of a sudden there's a genuine risk these blokes will just drop the game all together.

A 45-year-old bloke trying to match-it with a Group-quality centre? It's not what Mid-west is about.

And it's for this reason rules exist.

You can't play in the Mid-west competition if you've played three first grade games the year before.

An exception can be obtained, but that at the end of the day is the call of Group 10 and its board. Not Mid-west. And allowing both Cargo and the Raiders to join was a Mid-west call.

Group 10 should, and I believe will, step in and make a final call on who can and can't play in the shortened second division season.

The Raiders' stint as a rugby league entity in the region may disappear as quickly as it arrived.

While Cargo, while obviously desperate for a game, boasts far too much quality to be playing Mid-west. Here's a prediction: If the Heelers play, their men's and league tag sides will go through their respective competitions undefeated.

The many levels of community sport are a complex beast. The rules can be murky, and often the lines move to suit.

But what is crystal clear is second division senior sport, in any code, is there for a reason.

It exists for players who want to skip training on a Tuesday, and a Thursday and still have a bit of fun on the field, and then have a beer after the game.

Nothing more, nothing less. Let's not alter that for the sake of footy in 2020.