NRL players heading to the bush after their professional career is something we all love.
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Few things get crowds as excited as the prospect of a big name taking to the field and mixing it with the best of the locals.
There have been plenty of former top-flight players who enjoyed spells in Group 11 and there's been varying degrees of success.
In part three of our top 50 Group 11 players since 2000, we've got some of those who did excel in our region.
30 Noel Solomon (Cobar)
Some of the silkiest hands seen in Group 11. Solomon helped make history when he was part of the first North Queensland Cowboys side in 1995 ARL season, but in the mid-2000s he was playing for the Cobar Roosers.
Comfortable at five-eighth or lock, Solomon was the type of player who could create something out of nothing with a magic pass or kick. His quality was no surprise given he had represented the North Sydney Bears and Cowboys early in his career.
29 Jeremy Thurston (Nyngan, Wellington, CYMS)
Undoubtedly the standout of the new Peter McDonald Premiership era. In two years of the new western-wide competition, Thurston has finished top try-scorer twice and iced Dubbo CYMS' 2023 grand final win with a late field goal.
After bouncing around reserve grade and a few different clubs late last decade, Thurston moved to CYMS in 2020 and everything changed. Now fitter than ever before, Thurston has the ability to seemingly float across the field before hitting the accelerator and flying through a hole. Someone who always seems to beat the first tackle, Thurston was extremely unlucky not to play NSW Country in 2022.
28 Travis Waddell (Wellington)
Waddell only spent one year with Wellington but the biggest compliment you can give him is the standard he set is still used as the example to follow today.
A huge part of Wellington's drought-breaking premiership win in 2019 whether he was at hooker or lock, former NRL player Waddell was man of the match in the grand final win.
A smart operator who always looked every bit a former top-flight player, Waddell is up there with the best one-season players the competition has had.
27 Steve Lyons (Cobar)
The type of bush footy prop everyone loves. Lyons might have had a hot dog or pie before the game but then he'd go out there and match it with the very best of them.
For a prop, his ability to score tries was ridiculous. In the 2008 season, the Cobar big man scored 11 tries in the opening three rounds. He then earned Group 11 selection and scored on the representative stage as well.
Someone who was probably still a little underrated, Lyons was one of the stars during an era when things were on the decline for Cobar.
26 Mitch Andrews (Forbes)
Maybe the toughest competitor of the recent Group 11 era. Few players give as much as Andrews on the field.
He was just a teenager when he scored a crucial late try in Forbes' long-awaited 2016 grand final win. He then went to the Newcastle Knights for a period before returning and producing a man-of-the-match effort in another Magpies premiership in 2022.
As a fullback, Andrews runs the ball like a front-rower while there's been few better defensive organisers than the NSW Country representative.
25 Josh Merritt (Macquarie, Westside, Nyngan)
As naturally talented as anyone to play in Group 11 the past few decades and one of the very best players to watch when he's on.
Merritt is a fantastic playmaker and has been since helping Macquarie to the 2012 Group 11 premiership. With one of the best kicking games in the west and a great knack for kicking 40/20s, Merritt has the ability to keep the opposition on the back foot.
While inconsistency, and a little too much aggression at times, has hampered him, there's no doubt he's one of the best halves in the competition's recent history.
24 Moses Manu (Macquarie)
A human wrecking ball. When Manu got the ball close to the line it just felt like he was going to score.
As well as being a barnstorming front-rower, Manu also set a standard for his Macquarie teammates to follow and he was hugely competitive.
A former college gridiron player in the US, the Tongan was a big factor in Macquarie's 2012 premiership.
23 Blaine Stanley (Wellington)
Gifted. As naturally talented as they come. Wellington has a proud of history of developing rugby league talent and Stanley is up there with the best.
A former NRL player who once scored 22 points on his own for the Cronulla Sharks against North Queensland, Stanley was soon back at Wellington after the 2002 season.
The talented half was named Group 11 player of the year in 2005 as Wellington made the grand final and his skill level is still something spoken about pretty regularly today.
22 Justin Carney (Nyngan)
If Carney got the ball out wide in a one-on-one situation, he scored. As simple as that.
It was once said the Nyngan Tigers had six or 12 points before the game started because you knew the hard-running Carney would score at least once.
After a 10-year professional career in the NRL and Super League, Carney returned home to the Tigers to great fanfare. He didn't disappoint either as the Tigers marched to the 2019 Group 11 finals.
21 Peter Boon (Macquarie, Westside)
Few players had the longevity and sustained quality of play of this playmaker.
Having played with Westside in the 1990s before their demise, Boon moved to Macquarie and had great success.
He wasn't the biggest player on the field but he was a clever player who offered utility value. He was named Group 11 player of the year in 2001 and then helped the Raiders to the 2008 title.
Having enjoyed plenty of representative accolades during his career, Boon also spent time playing in the Castlereagh League while he also returned to Westside during their short-lived return.