Macquarie’s derby clash with Westside has been labelled a must-win if the Raiders are to have a serious impact on this season’s Group 11 competition.
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There was plenty of hype around the Raiders heading into the 2017 season but a win over Nyngan in round one has been followed by three successive losses.
The defeats have come to leading contenders Parkes, Forbes and CYMS and Raiders co-coach Steve McLellan stated the upcoming matches against the Rabbitohs, Wellington and Narromine as crucial for his side.
“It’s really important. We’ve got to start winning if we’re to stay in touch and we’ve targeted these next three games as very important ones,” he said.
We’ve got to start winning if we’re to stay in touch.
- Steve McLellan
“We’re not underestimating underestimating any side but at the end of the day these would be deemed as a bit easier.”
McLellan stated his side’s start to the season has been somewhat frustrating on a number of fronts.
A host of new players in the side, a spate of injuries and the conceding of long range tries hasn’t made life easy for McLellan and fellow co-coach and captain Zac Rennick but the biggest issue has been the Raiders’ inability to produce an 80 minute performance.
The men in sky blue stuck it to Forbes two weeks ago before leading CYMS 4-0 early on last week during an impressive start to the derby clash at Caltex Park but both occasions ended if fairly routine wins for the opposition.
“We need to start producing that for the full 80 minutes,” McLellan said.
“We believe part of that is just between the ears. It’s not fitness, that’s not an issue but if something doesn’t go our way we’ve been compounding it with an error and then drop our bundle a bit.”
In terms of Sunday’s derby clash with Westside, McLellan is expecting it to be another fiery affair.
There’s no love lost between the two rivals due to the fact a number of players have swapped between the two sides.
Anthony Toomey is the latest of those, having played for Macquarie last season, and he will line up in the centres for the Rabbitohs on Sunday, while the likes of Josh Merritt, Quentin Dickinson, Blaize Fuller, Jade Hooper and Kurt Fuller have also played for both.
“Westside will come out all guns blazing and we’ve got to answer that,” McLellan said.
“We need to hang in there and not end up chasing the game. We’re not underestimating them at all.
“But it’s a must-win game for us. We need to start putting some wins together and gain some confidence.”
The action at Caltex Park begins with the League Tag at 11am with the first grade match expected to kick off around 2.30pm.
MACQUARIE: 1 Laberato Tauoqooqo, 2 Ash Widders, 3 Wade Peachey, 4 Luke Gale, 5 Blaize Fuller, 6 Josh Merritt, 7 Willie Wright, 8 Jade Hooper, 9 Matt Lane, 10 Jayden Merritt, 11 John Ciappara, 12 Kurt Fuller, 24 Zac Rennick ©, 14 Tom Magann, 15 Quentin Dickinson, 16 Eroni Turaga, 17 Kepu Nathan
Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
