There was to be no fairytale finish to the season for the Boars second grade side, with the Narromine Gorillas cruising to a 25 point victory in the New Holland Cup second grade grand final on Saturday afternoon in Mudgee.
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Narromine got off to a flyer, crossing the line in just 45 seconds, before adding another within five minutes.
It was a sign of things to come for the Boars.
A clever grubber by Brad Burrell near the Parkes try line saw the Boars hit back at the 15 minute mark, but it was the Gorillas who had the lions share of possession, and it wouldn't take them long to bounce back.
A skirmish in a maul saw Iszac Oliver shown a yellow card, and Narrromine were proving to be too physical at the coal face.
The extra man on the field saw Narromine cross easily out wide before adding a penalty goal just before the half time whistle, taking the score to 25-7.
Parkes needed a huge start to the second half and they did just that, taking advantage of a string of ruck infringements from Narromine to roll over under the posts.
Michael Murphy added the extras, taking the score to 25-12 and giving the Boars a glimmer of hope with 25 minutes to go.
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Parkes were beginning to generate some momentum on the back of their second try, but too many simple errors gifted Narromine the ball and allowed them back into the game.
A number of missed tackles gave Narromine some good field position, and a try with 20 minutes to go effectively put the game to bed.
Narromine were too big, too strong, too fast and too well organised on the day, and despite the massive effort from an undersized Boars side, the Gorillas took home the trophy.
Put simply, they were the better team on the day.
Not all is lost for the Boars however, with a host of young stars rising through the ranks.
Michael Murphy and Brad Burrell are an electric partnership in the halves, while Dylan Phillips provides a spark in the number 15 jumper.
Mackenzie Green is as steady as they come in the forwards while 'Mr Trots' Mitch Hutchings has a booming leg and had a fantastic game in the grand final in the centres.
There is no doubt that the club has had a huge turnaround in 2020 after 2019 was a season of listless under accomplishment.
When one is lucky enough to go to a Boars home game at Northparkes Oval the camaraderie, professionalism and genuine enjoyment of both players and supporters is wonderful to see.
Rugby union is thriving in Parkes. Now all that's left is to get the Spicer Oval upgrades pushed through in order to give the club a place to genuinely call home.
A clubhouse, amenities block and improved turf at Spicer Oval will help to grow the game in what is now a thriving Central West region in addition to providing a better cricketing surface.
Bring on 2021 - the Boars are coming back to defend their crown as the club to watch!
Narromine 37 (Tylah Beer, Ryan Wheeler, Washington Itoya, Hamish Andrews, Angus Bodiam, Alexander Marr tries; Ryan Wheeler 3 goals) defeated Parkes Boars 12 (Joe Moss, Nathan Cornelius tries; Michael Murphy 1 goal)
