Pictured left is 14 year old Grace and on the right, her 16 year old sister Elizabeth.

Rugby league has a strong following in Parkes and we are fortunate to have a very healthy junior club, with a staggering amount of talented young players. For sisters Grace and Elizabeth Magregor, rugby league runs in the family. Both girls grew up watching their brothers and cousins play rugby league, motivating them to start playing football at a young age. 

Fourteen year old Grace has played for an impressive number of representative teams this year, including: Parkes U14s league tag, U14s Western Rams league tag squad, Katrina Fanning School Rugby League Cup U14s team, U14s Woodbridge Rugby League team.

When asked to pick a standout memory from this season Grace said, “My Woodbridge under 14s team was undefeated throughout the competition this year. Coming into the grand final we knew it wasn’t going to be an easy game as Dubbo Goannas were our strongest competitors throughout the year. I scored three of the four tries in the grand final and got the player of the match at the end of the game.”

At sixteen years of age, Graces older sister Elizabeth Macgregor is an extremely sought after player and was involved in the following teams this season: Parkes U17s league tag, Western Rams U16s and U18s rugby league team, Catholic School Southern Rugby League country team, the inaugural NSWCCC team.

“My under 16s Woodbridge team went better than I think we all expected heading into the competition. I don’t think any of us had much faith that we would make it to the semis let alone the grand final, but we all really improved as a team throughout the year. We made it to the grand final, but Orange was just a bit hungrier for the win,” said Elizabeth.

Both girls were awarded top try scorers in their respective age groups for the season.

Grace and Elizabeth both attribute their success to putting in the hard work, keeping fit and grasping every opportunity that presents itself. 

They are both extremely grateful for their parents, who have influenced their love of the sport and have been their number one supporters, driving them to every game and ensuring they have every opportunity to succeed. 

Keep a keen eye out for these two talented Parkes sisters in the years to come. Considering the success both Grace and Elizabeth are achieving at such a young age, it is not a stretch to say that we may one day see the Macgregor sisters playing in the NRLW competition.

As it stands, there is some healthy competition in the Macgregor household, as Grace is an avid Roosters supporter and older sister Elizabeth supports the three time reigning NRL Premiers, the Penrith Panthers.

Damian Price ‘drove’ his daughter Sarah down Bedgerabong Road in a tinnie to help her get to a Goannas Under 12s game during the recent flood.

There is dedication to Rugby League and then there is the Price family of Forbes.

Damian Price and his daughter Sarah were gearing up for a weekend match with the Dubbo Wiradjuri Goannas in Wellington, while keeping one eye on a swollen Lachlan River.

Sarah plays for the Goannas Under 12s tackle team and she’s also a member of the Red Bend Blues League Tag team.

So, there’s a strong commitment to the game from the Prices – even when Mother Nature comes calling.

“It was a normal Saturday game and on the Friday afternoon, the water was only ankle deep, so we thought ‘Yep, we’ll be able to drive out in the morning’.”

The Price family home on two-and-half hectares is situated 200m from the road into Forbes. But as Saturday dawned the water from the Lachlan River was above-the-knee and rising. They couldn’t get to their front gate. “So, we got the tinnie out and when we got out onto Bedgerabong Road it was over a metre deep,” said Damian.

So, Damian and Sarah ‘drove’ their boat along the bitumen road normally used by car, to rendezvous with another father Blake Goodsall and his daughter on dry land.

“Blake was able to drive them to the game as I couldn’t get my car out. We just didn’t think the river would rise that fast.”

Other players from farms further afield stayed overnight in Forbes so they could get to Wellington.

Sarah came home the same way – with her dad waiting in the tinnie at the meeting point.

“She plays League Tag too but she just loves the tackle game,” he said. 

“I said to her, ‘Once we commit to the team we’ve got to support them no matter what’. That’s what she did and I did my part to make sure she didn’t miss out.”

(Story and photo: NSW Rugby League page.)