The top 50: Who are the best players to play in Group 11?

It started with a Brett Chippendale field-goal deciding a one-point grand final thriller between Macquarie and Narromine while now we're at a point where Group 11 is no more and the Peter McDonald Premiership reigns supreme.

No matter the name of the competition, some truly brilliant players have taken to the fields of Dubbo, Wellington, Parkes, Forbes, Nyngan, Narromine and Cobar.

But who's been the best?

As the 2024 season approaches and we reach a quarter-of-a-century, we'll countdown the best 50 players to have represented Group 11 clubs in first grade during that time.

We'll kick-off the countdown at 50, and bring 10 new players to the list each morning this week.

Most players would love to make history in a grand final. Probably not the way Mick Darcy did though.

In 2004, the hard-running forward became the first player in the history of the competition to be sent-off in the opening minute of a grand final. He was, however, later cleared of any foul play.

While that may be what he's most remembered for, premiership-winner Darcy had much more his game than that and was a hugely dedicated and successful forward in the 2000s.

The type of hard worker every team loves to have. But Roworth was also about much more than toughness and durability.

A dangerous centre, Roworth was always towards the top of the Group 11 point-scorers' charts with his ability to find the tryline and kick goals.

Also a tower of strength in defence, Roworth went on to play in the back-row as he got a little older.

An absolute workhorse. He spent more than a decade at Narromine and was part of the 2005 premiership-winning team while he also played in grand finals in 2000 and 2002.

A towering presence, Lake was able to provide strike-power in the centres or knuckle down and get to work in the back-row.

Lake also represented Western Division during his time at Narromine while he brought the curtain down on his career with a stint at Dubbo Westside.

That's right, the great 'Bubba' Kennedy did play in Group 11. He was part of a short-lived Cabonne United side which played finals in 2007.

That proved to be the club's only year in Group 11 but 'Bubba' made it count as he proved himself one of the very best players in the competition. He scored five tries in one win over Nyngan while he scored four tries for the Group 11 representative side in a match against Group 10.

A true great of bush footy.

It's sometimes said of a player "you hate to play against him, but you love to play with him". Goldsmith was the definition of that in his brief time in Group 11.

The Nyngan hooker was public enemy number one for the opposition nearly every time he walked on the field but he was also much more than just a pest.

He had great craft and guile as well as a real toughness in defence and played a massive role in getting the Tigers' to their first grand final in first grade in 2017.

He arrived something of an unknown but 'Benji' finished a great of footy in the Western area.

Papua New Guinea international John quickly established himself as one of the very best players in the competition after arriving at Parkes. An explosive player at hooker, the highlight of John's time in Group 11 was undoubtedly his hat-trick performance in the 2010 grand final win over Wellington.

All three tries came from smart dummyhalf running and he was a simple choice for the Bob Weir Medal.

After his time at Parkes, he went on to be a star in Group 10 with both Bathurst St Pat's and Cowra.

Not many people have scored a hat-trick in a grand final win. Not only has Louie done that, he did it twice for two different clubs.

One of the fastest players to lace up boots in Group 11, Louie bounced around a few clubs in his time but had success - and plenty of tries - almost everywhere he went.

He scored a hat-trick in Dubbo CYMS' 2002 triumph while he returned to Narromine and crossed three times in the Jets' stunning come-from-behind win over Wellington in 2005.

He also made the 2007 decider with the Macquarie Raiders.

He arrived in Group 11 as part of a Fijian contingent which boosted the numbers at a Parkes club in danger of folding. Once he settled in, he quickly established himself as one of the top props in the competition and got through a mountain of work every single week.

After earning international selection while at Parkes, he moved across to Dubbo CYMS and kept doing the same thing and was rewarded with premiership glory.

Someone still making an impact in reserve grade now, big 'Soni' just keeps trucking all day.

One of the true greats for Forbes in the early 2000s when the Magpies played in two grand finals in three seasons.

A powerhouse centre who often seemed unbeatable in defence, Schrader spent time at the Canberra Raiders but was stuck behind a bloke called Mal Meninga.

He was happy to make the move to Forbes to work and play footy. On the field, he was a class above at times and two tries in the 2003 grand final loss to an outstanding CYMS side was proof of that.

Understandably, you're probably confused to see an Australian international this low on the list.

But Ferguson was 33 when he returned home to Wellington to much fanfare early in the 2023 season so he wasn't quite at that level. However, he was still at a level above most running around the region.

He was easily one of the best in the Peter McDonald Premiership last year and finished third on the try-scorers' chart despite only playing 10 regular season games.

His height and ability to leap for a ball was unlike anyone else while he absolutely whacked a number of opposing centres during his lone season back at home.