Nyngan Tigers captain-coach Jacob Neill has lashed out at the culture at his club, saying more people need to follow the example being set by a core group of first grade players.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After making last season’s grand final and finishing just one win short of a historic premiership, things haven’t gone to plan for the Tigers this season.
A surge in the second half of the season has got the Tigers back in the finals race but Sunday’s loss to Macquarie, one which came after Neill’s side led 14-0 early, makes it incredibly tough for Nyngan to make this season’s top five.
RELATED:
The side struggled to attract a high-profile replacement for last season’s captain-coach, Stewart Mills, during the off-season and numbers on the park each week has been an issue Neill has had to deal with all year.
“I think our effort has been there all year and I can’t fault that but I think Nyngan has got to get a bit of a culture shock,” he said after Sunday’s loss.
“There’s 13 blokes here who played fresh today and one junior backed up and we’re a town which prides itself on its football and it’s been shithouse, to be honest.
“Our club is a very passionate one and one which should be at the top of Group 11 and we’ve worked hard. These guys I’ve got with me now are starting to build that culture.
“We’ve been very lucky over the last few years and have had quality players who have good experience but we’ve lost them and these boys keeping busting their arse every game.
“I just want to see a few more take a bit of character from what these guys are doing.”
Nyngan is two points outside the top five and faces fourth-placed faces Forbes and minor premiers CYMS in the final two rounds.
“We’ll fight,” Neill said in relation to the battle for finals.
“We’ll always fight because we’ve been that way ever since we’ve been in Group 11.”