The club had a productive meet-and-greet and signup day at its field on Saturday, although Battersby feels the clash with the Deepwater Races may have kept some prospective players away. 

Training starts next Tuesday, January 31 from 5.30pm Qld time (6.30pm NSW time), and Battersby is encouraging potential players to come along in order to field a men’s team in this year’s Border Rugby League competition.

Dwindling player numbers forced the Rams to withdrew from last year’s competition with a round to go, although the leaguetag team persevered making it all the way to the grand final, losing to Tenterfield.

Club president Shane Binney said he’s about 90 per cent sure the club can field a men’s team, with a few more players yet to sign up.

Binney is also the leaguetag coach, and is anticipating another strong season for the girls. There will be some familiar faces from last year, plus three new players already signed up and a couple more to come.

The Wallangarra playing field has drawn some criticism in the past but Battersby said it didn’t look too bad on inspection on the weekend, although once the frosts hit some bare patches can be revealed. Binney hopes to undertake some renovation work at the end of the season, with insufficient time to do much this season before play kicks off.

While Battersby took the field for the Tigers last year, a torn Achilles heel just before the grand final put his playing days on hold and he’ll be coaching from the sidelines.