It is a huge round of football and netball at Deniliquin’s Hardinge St Oval in round 12 of the Murray League.
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The Deni Rams will host the Numurkah Blues.
The Rams’ senior footballers have just come off a 24 point loss to fourth placed Cobram.
Coach Gary Parsons said his side gave so much effort in the game that their opponents ultimately outlasted them.
“They probably wore us down a bit.
“We chased really hard all game and then dropped off in the last.
“Some of our bigger bodies and younger guys couldn’t sustain the amount of effort they gave right until the end, as it was a pretty physical battle.
“Gus Durnan and Monte Barnes battled well against (Jackson) Trengove in the ruck, but he’s a pretty big man. We gave it our all.”
The Rams were in touching distance of Cobram throughout last week’s game, but several key injuries meant the Rams were wounded on their way to the finish line.
“It also didn’t help that we lost Ben East early with a shoulder.
“One of our best ball winners, Todd Gallagher, also did his knee and that contributed to it.
“We had 17 players on the field for a period, because that was what we could manage for a period of time.
“Overall, we just lack a bit of real experience just to finish sides off.
“Although you can’t knock our effort, intensity and tackling that has been exemplary.”
Despite losing players, Parsons said there are clear positive signs in his team’s performances.
“Taking injuries out of it, obviously we were in the game and look at how we played.
“Young Will Henderson was BOG for us, Luke Todd, Brock Redden and Chase Bartlett, who is only 15, all played well.
“We’re in a lot of games.”
Heading into tomorrow’s games, the Rams are seventh on the ladder, while Nurmukah are in sixth. Both teams have five wins and six losses.
Parsons said he knows how big the game is, with potential finals ramifications for both sides.
“Numurkah is another good challenge. On our bigger ground, hopefully we can use that to our advantage with our running, as they’re a fairly physical side.
“We’ve got a bit of a rivalry with Numurkah. We’ve played them at their home deck over the last few years.
“They lost six of their first seven games of the season, but since then, they haven’t lost a game and have had a solid season all together.
“It’s like a finals game for us, which is strange to say, even though we’re eight weeks out from finals.
“Our competition is pretty even right across the board. We’re looking forward to a good challenge for us, and our blokes are relishing it.”
While experience by definition takes a period of time to develop, Parsons said he feels the growth of the Rams’ footballers has come in leaps and bounds this year.
“Even some of our more experienced players haven’t played a lot of games at this level of the competition.
“That bit of inexperience is what has cost us in close games, but we’re getting there.
“We’ve got nine to 10 players who have come up to seniors this year, which has been the difference in close games, but their development augurs well for the club down the track whether this year, next year or the year after.”