The 2024 Group 9 Rugby League season kicks off on Saturday with defending premiers Tumut fielding a new-look team.
The Blues start their campaign against the Wagga Kangaroos at McDonald’s Park on Saturday in a Grand Final rematch.
Captain-coach Zac Masters said that about 14 players from first grade and reserve grade had moved on or retired since last year’s premiership success and that two very different teams would be making the trip to Wagga.
“We’re hoping to be competitive, and with the side we’re fielding, I’d like to think we’ll give it a good shake,” Masters said.
“It has been well-publicised that we have lost a lot of players and experience from the red-hot side we had last year that took out the title.
“This year, it will be a bit different, but we’ll see how the season unfolds.”
Tumut will be without 2022 Weissel Medal winner Lachlan Bristow, along with premiership-winning players Jacob Sturt, Mitch Ivill, Michael Fenn, Brayden Draber, Thomas Hickson, and Adam Pearce.
Talented outside back Michael Clarke returns to the fold, as does local junior and rugby convert Trae Young.
Englishmen Toby Mallinson and Lachlan McGill join them at the club, along with former Yass Magpie Kyle Danilczak.
“Losing players is never easy to deal with, but the pre-season numbers have been getting better and continue to grow, and last week, we had our best couple of training runs,” Masters said.
“I don’t expect to hit the ground running, and with a lot of new faces and young blokes coming through, we’ll improve week-by-week and build throughout the season.”
Tumut has enjoyed an excellent five-year run, winning titles in 2019 and 2023, while the Blues were top of the table and favourite to win the competition before the COVID pandemic abruptly ended the 2021 Group 9 season.
Masters said it had been a wonderful period for the Blues and that it was time for the club’s next generation of stars to get their taste of first-grade footy.
“It was very special after we came through that tough period, and we need to appreciate those good times." he said.
“Like every team, you’ve got to be lucky with injuries, and we don’t have the luxury of that depth this year. “
The Blues will call on two of the more exciting young players in the competition.
Mal Aitken (Photo above: Jeff Hanson) will line up at fullback after Mitch Ivill moved on, while former Tumut Bull Trae King has earned a shot at the vacant centre position.
“Young Trae King has been impressive. He’s come up from the Under-18s, and I think he’ll make a handy centre,” Masters said.
“I wasn’t sure if he would go straight into a first grade role, but he’s impressed me. He’s played a bit with the Bulls, and I can see him playing a lot of first grade.
“We’ve also got Mal. He’s so fast, and the last couple of years, he’s been huge on the wing and one of the best in the comp, but he’s not really a winger.
“He came through juniors playing halves and a bit of hooker, and he’ll get that opportunity to play fullback, and he should get a lot more involved in games.”
The Blues’ recent success had been built around their forward pack, and Masters admitted depth was a concern. But if his starting pack stayed fit and healthy, they would match any other engine room in the competition.
“We’ve got blokes who play big minutes, with Barge (Mathew Byatt) and me, plus we have Lewis Arragon back in first grade this year,” Masters said.
“He has been massive for us in previous seasons, and this year, he’ll get that consistent role in the middle.”
There will be a lot of focus on Tumut, but Masters believes it is an open competition picking out two teams that will take some beating.
“I think Young has got to be up there, and Kangaroos, too,” he said.
“They lost Latrell (Siegwalt), but any team with Rosey (Nathan Rose) will be competitive.”
With Wagga Brothers returning to the First-Grade competition in 2024, eight teams will battle for Group 9 glory.
In Round One, the remaining games will see Albury Thunder host the Gundagai Tigers at Greenfield Park, Young Cherrypickers take on a visiting Southcity Bulls at Alfred Oval, and Junee Diesels take on the Temora Dragons at Laurie Daley Oval.
Click here for Group 9 competition draws.
