SOCCER
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Dubbo FC Bulls have gotten their title defences off to a great start, lead by their women's side, who scored a stunning 26-0 win over Orana Spurs.
In the senior men's competition, Dubbo Bulls 1 downed South Dubbo Wanderers 1 5-0.
Captain-coach Scott Fox said the squad dominated possession, but couldn't convert their chances.
"We probably had the majority of possession in the first 30 minutes and we'd get into the final third and then just some poor decisions and touches let us down," Fox said.
Kobe Rapley's man of the match performance included pivotal roles in the team's first two goals, and Fox said he and Gareth Williams would be key players in the Bulls season.
"He [Rapley] was full of energy and it seemed like every time he got the ball he was beating defenders and causing havoc."
"They'll influence most of our results I'd say and they'll be our main men."
Bulls second grade beat the Wanderer's second side 1-nil, with Jerryn Biles proving his dedication to the side by playing the day after his wedding, and the Bulls all-age men's side managed a 1-all draw against RSL 78s.
However it was the women's team who commanded attentionwith their 26-0 thrashing of Orana Spurs.
A few personnel changes during the off-season didn't seem to phase the ladies, as they ran away to a 12-nil lead at half-time.
Coach Dane McCollough challenged the ladies to double it, which they surpassed, going on to put another 14 goals away in the second half, and striker Emma Wills came away with a staggering 12-goal haul.
The biggest year on record from Dubbo soccer has kicked off without a hitch, according to Dubbo District Soccer Association secretary Jim Auld.
Round one of the Dubbo District Soccer competition kicked off on the weekend, with 32 senior teams taking to the field on Sunday, April 12.
Auld said there had been "oodles and oodles of games" and "everything went off without a hitch".
"I think that it was very, very competitive," he said.
"All grades look like being a stronger competition this year than it has been in the past."
"Just the skills of the players have increased. We've got more competition this year than we've ever had in the past - we've got more players and more teams and some of the players move around from club to club for various reasons."
"Some of them will go and add expertise to a club that hasn't been particularly strong in the past, which is really, really good."
Auld said it was especially pleasing to see some added depth in the women's competition.
"[It's] good to see some of the teams in the women's competition, who have sort of been in the bottom area of the competition for a couple of years, they've improved out of sight," he said.
"I give credit to two teams in particular - Dubbo City Rangers women and Narromine - both of those teams recorded wins over the weekend which was very, very pleasing to see."
Aside from Dubbo FC's big win, RSL 78s downed North West Falcons 13-0.
Auld said it was unfortunate for those teams that started the season with a heavy defeat , but "everyone has to start somewhere".
"They'll gain valuable experience, they'll improve and they'll get some wins," he said.
The juniors' competition kicks off this weekend, with 163 teams taking to the field in the under-5s right up to the under-17s.
Auld said the Saturday game times have been altered for the juniors, with Central West Administrator of Game Development Andrew Fearnley running coaching sessions on Friday night and Saturday morning.
"He's also going to do a special coaching session for our coaches of the senior teams and also some of the junior teams as well."