In a triumphant first home match of the season for the Boars, first grade won a nail-biting encounter 18-17, second grade held on for a two point win 24-22, and the Colts ran out convincing 34-0 victors in front of a parochial Parkes crowd.

It was a maiden victory for all three grades this season.

Coaches Tony Byrne, Trevor Whittaker and Paul Moody were delighted the teams continued to build on their hard work over the previous two rounds which have seen the Boars growing stronger week by week.

Having to fight back from being 12-10 down at half-time, the Boars first grade side showed plenty of spirit to claim their first win of the season.

Before play, the ANZACs were remembered with all teams standing for the last post and a minutes silence before the reading of the ANZAC Ode.

For the first time this season, a full strength Boars was led out by captain Dan Ryan to face the previously undefeated Orange Emus.

Co-coach Paul Moody was understandably pleased with his side’s win.

“It was a huge effort from all the boys,” Moody said.

“We all knew a win was coming soon and the effort and attitude at training during the week was excellent.

“We came up with a plan and congratulations to the boys for carrying it out.

“The plan was to starve Emus of territory and stop the ball getting to their dangerous outside backs.

“Anytime they got a bit of ball, our boys held them out.

“It really was an outstanding defensive effort all round,” he said.

Emus started the better side and put the Boars on the back foot early with some aggressive attack.

Only desperate Boars tackles from hooker Nick Westcott  and winger Marika Koroivui held the Emus at bay.

After weathering the early storm, the Boars started to put strong phases together and enjoy some possession.

Parkes were awarded a penalty scrum on the Emus 22 metre line before the ref penalised the visitors for backchat.

The Boars continued to build pressure and another Emus infringement saw centre Warren Lowe put the first points on the board after 13 minutes with a successful penalty goal for 3-0.

Emus looked to respond with concerted attack on the Boars line, but solid defence from Grant Danson and Sam Denison and poor handling from the Orange side saw Parkes’ line remain intact.

Holding up to the pressure, the Boars made their chances count. 

Good ball movement found winger Koroivui in space and able to beat the Emus defence. 

He slid through a gap and put the ball down next to the posts for Warren Lowe to take the extras and give Parkes a 10-0 lead 25 minutes into the match. 

Emus hit straight back when they quickly worked the ball wide to score through winger Simon Badgery. 

The conversion was missed for 10-5.

The battle through the middle of the park continued, but Emus seemed to have the ascendancy when they were awarded a penalty scrum five metres from the Boars line.

Orange’s bigger pack turned the scrum and hooker Thomas Goolagong bustled across the line next to the post to score.

Nigel Staniforth made no mistake and added the extras for Emus to lead for the first time in the match 12-10.

The early exchanges of the second half emulate those of the first with the Emus throwing everything they had against a determined Boars defence. 

The Boars held out the visitors and reclaimed the lead when Tohi stole the ball and pushed through the Emus defence. 

A rush of blood saw him try a kick, which flew off the side of his boot, much to the delight of the crowd. 

The ball deflected off an Emus player and was swooped up by Johnno O’Brien.

The ball was then fed wide through James Dean and Sam Standen to find Koroivui who cut back inside and through the defence to score wide of the posts. 

The conversion was missed, but the Boars were back in front 15-12.

The arm wrestle continued until it looked like Emus had claimed victory with a late try.

With 15 minutes to go, a charge down and regather by Emus flanker Louie Levett gives the Orange team a five pointer and the lead at 17-15.

The Boars continued to fight and had an opportunity to reclaim the lead with a penalty goal attempt.

Riley Byrne’s effort scraped the posts, but it was not long before the Boars had another chance courtesy of an Emus infringement 45 metres out.

Dan Ryan stepped up for his first kick in two years with the wind gushing and the crowd on the edge of their seats. 

The big lock sent his kick sailing over the black dot for the crowd to roar in delight with the lead back with the home team 18-17.

Three minutes later, Emus were awarded the same opportunity on the 30 metre line but the ball sailed across the face of the posts.

The final 10 minutes of the game saw the Boars continue to hold out in defence and menace the Emus attack.

Desperate defence held out the Emus attack for the Boars to hang on for a memorable win 18–17.

There is a general bye in Blowes Clothing Cup next week as the Country Championships are being held in Bowral. 

“It will be good to have the extra week off,” Moody said.

“We have a couple of guys nursing injuries who could do with a bit of extra time to get right.

“Then we will be looking to build on this win with another strong performance against CSU Bathurst at Northparkes Oval on May 9,” he said.