Narromine captain-coach Wes Middleton hailed his side’s ongoing commitment after the Jets scored a stunning upset against the Forbes Magpies on Saturday.
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After going through the first nine rounds of the Group 11 season without without a win, the Jets broke through last weekend when downing Macquarie and at Cale Oval on Saturday they made it-back-to-back victories when fighting back from 22-14 down to beat the Magpies.
It marked the second successive memorable weekend for the club, as well. The win over Macquarie came in NAIDOC round while Saturday’s fixture was the club’s annual charity match.
The Jets, who wore eye-catching one-off strips for the game, have now won the David Gillespie Charity Trophy three years in a row.
Speaking at the post-match presentation – captured live on the Narromine Jets Facebook page – Middleton had nothing but praise for his side.
“I think we’ve improved every week since the season started,” he told his players.
“We’ve stuck with the same core group of boys in first grade and I’ve had full belief in you. That’s back-to-back wins now and we’re starting to hit our straps and that comes down to our discipline and the fact we’re turning up and training.
“We’ve had a full first grade side at training since the season started … the rewards are starting to show.”
Tony Clevin continued his stellar second half of the season with another man of the match effort, one which included a match-winning field goal and penalty inside the final four minutes.
Clevin, who again played the full 80 minutes in reserve grade and first grade, has made the number six jersey his own in recent weeks and his naming as the Jets’ best was met with a huge amount of cheers from Narromine players and fans.
Early in the match, the Jets had shot out of the blocks and led 14-0 but teenager Farren Lamb then single-handedly got his Magpies side back in the match.
The youngster scored a double and booted two goals to have his side trailing by just two at the break and then Dennis Spathis and Tim Dukes both crossed to put the visitors in total command early in the second stanza.
The sides swapped two tries each and that had Forbes leading 28-24 heading into the final 10 minutes.
An Owen Kennedy try leveled things up and while Clevin missed the conversion, he booted the field goal to put his side in front and a late penalty iced the thrilling victory.
It marked the second straight loss for the Magpies, both coming after inspirational captain Jake Grace departed on a belated honeymoon.
As always, there was much more to the weekend than the action on the field.
The junior Jets provided entertainment at half-time time in the first grade match. The under 8s outfit is currently raising money to go to Sydney to play at one of the NRL final series games, and the Jets were proud to make a donation on the day to their fundraising efforts.
The auction of the specially designed jerseys was a huge success with $9600 raised on Saturday night.
That money will remain in the local community, as is the case every year.
This money from the weekend was donated to Narromine Rescue Squad, Narromine Cancer Support Group, and the Dubbo Neighbourhood Centre. Each club received a cheque for $3200.
Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
