Spacies fired up for derby

It’s the Sunday footy fixture that’s locked into the calendar from season kick-off and Parkes rugby league club is planning for another big day. Parkes Spacemen host Forbes Magpies with four grades of footy kicking off with the league tag at 10.30am at Pioneer Oval. It’s one of the most anticipated games of the year, says first grade captain Sam Dwyer. “We look forward to it and I’m sure Forbes do as well,” he said. “It’s huge, it’s probably our biggest game of the year outside of playing in a final.” Local crowds are boosted by the long weekend and drawcard of the picnic races, Parkes fans flocking to the hill to watch the action. And action there will be. Forbes dominated the first meeting of the two clubs for the season at Spooner Oval four weeks ago but the scoreboard doesn’t tell the whole story – the opening stages of the game were intense until Parkes sustained a couple of injuries. “It was a tough game and we’ll be expecting the exact same,” Dwyer said. “It doesn’t matter what’s going on throughout the year, everyone stands up for this weekend and gets keen for it. “There was only two points in the under 18s game so it’ll be a great game.” The Spacies first grade squad has struggled with injuries the past few weeks, Dwyer himself recovery from a hamstring injury but ready to put himself through a bit of a fitness test at Thursday night training. He knows his brother Joe, also with a hamstring injury, Nate Wilson with a calf tear and Junior Igila with a foot injury, will be doing the same. “We’ve had a fair few injuries which has been a bit tough,” Dwyer acknowledged. “We’ve probably got six regular first grade boys out at the moment – a few will hope to get back for the weekend.” The bright side of that has been seeing the club’s next generation step up over the past month. “Lachie Thomas, Jett Rudd, Taj Lovett and Oakley Fliedner have all been playing pretty consistently over the past month,” Dwyer said. “They’ve been really good, it’s been good to have them there.” Will Wardle is one of those who will be back on field this weekend, but there’ll be more who’ll lock in after they see how the training run goes. Regardless, Dwyer would love to see the fans fill the hill again this Sunday – get there early to claim your vantage point and remember there’s a canteen in operation all day.