On Saturday NRL greats visited Wagga in a combined bid to tackle homelessness and introduce women’s tackle football to local players.
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Brad Fitler, Steve Menzies, Danny Buderus, Nathan Hindmarsh, Tim Brasher, Steve Roach, Josh Perry and Kerry Hemsley parked in town for a six-hour clinic at Parramore Park and a fundraising dinner at the Farrer Hotel on their Hogs for the Homeless tour.
The legends facilitated an under 14’s and under 16’s girls come and try tackle day on an idyllic 26-degree day.
The girls, all part of local junior league tag teams, took part in a nine-a-side tackle competition, the Oak Plus Cup.
“They all had a great time, it is something relatively new,” NRL south west NSW game development manager Adam Perry said.
Each participant went home with a free ball, and NRL veterans signed anything the girls could throw at them.
The legends also ran a skills session with open-age women in training for the Group Nine Reconciliation Cup in March.
“The older girls were probably able to appreciate them a bit more, they knew who they were," Perry said.
The sport has gained traction across the country as the Jillaroos prepare for the 2017 Women’s Rugby League World Cup in December.
But is the Riverina ready for a women’s league?
With Group Nine league tag thriving, Perry said it would be a great challenge to immediately introduce a women’s rugby league competition to the Riverina.
“It’s something that’s slowly building in popularity, with the Jillaroos getting publicity, the more it’s getting out there, the more women want to play it,” he said.
“There would be enough girls interested to have a competition, but league tag is really popular, and to stick it on Saturday, or Sunday, isn’t really feasible, there aren’t enough grounds or hours in the day.
“I’m sure something will happen in some form sooner rather than later.”
Around 80 local kids under the age of nine also took part in a clinic with the league greats on Saturday.
Around 100 people attended the fundraising dinner for father Chris Riley’s Youth Off the Streets charity.
The NRL legends spent the night mingling with Wagga locals, young and old, who bought raffle tickets and took part in charity auctions.
