The Australian Men’s Touch Football Squad arrives in Parkes today for a weekend full of clinics, training and games.

Parkes Pumas Touch will reap the benefits of the elite players and coaches mixing with the locals as they present their knowledge and skills of touch.

The current Australian men’s coach, Tony Trad, assistant coach Paul (Zeffer) Sfier and Australian player, Jason Stanton, visited Parkes last year as members of the Blackest Cats elite coaching team.

They were so impressed with the facilities at Pioneer Oval; arrangements were made to bring the Men’s Squad to Parkes.

The squad usually trains in metropolitan areas as players come from all over Australia.

The team is training for the Tran Tasman Series between men’s, women’s and mixed teams from Australia and New Zealand.

The Trans Tasman Series will be held in New Zealand during January 2010.

Australia last played New Zealand at Win Stadium in Wollongong during July this year for the Trans Tasman Trophy which was won by the Aussies.

The Men’s Open side had a tough series against a very strong Kiwi outfit with the following results:

Game 1: AUS (14) defeated NZ (10)

Game 2: AUS (8) defeated by NZ (9)

Game 3: AUS (5) defeated NZ (3)

The Australian squad training in Parkes this weekend will be understandably wary of New Zealand when they cross the Tasman for the next series of matches in January 2010.

The squad is chosen on the player’s high skill level, fitness and their flexibility to adapt to game scenario changes directed by the coaching staff.

Drummayne Dayberg-Muir and Jason Stanton - both of whom are regarded as the best touch players in the world - highlight the quality of talent on display this weekend.

The squad contains many other talented players seasoned in the rigors of Test matches and young gun 21 year old Dylan Hennessey, who plays with a lot of maturity for his age.

Joel Willoughby is ,another superb player and his lethal long ball is probably the best in Australia at the moment.