PRESS RELEASE

MACQUARIE UNI NORTH HARBOUR RAYS ANNOUCE THEIR SQUAD FOR 2014 NRC SEASON

THE Macquarie Uni North Harbour Rays will rely on finely-tuned club combinations that has seen the Manly Marlins and Warringah have stellar seasons when the National Rugby Championship kicks off at the end of August.

The Rays announced the bulk of their squad for the NRC this week and the vast majority of the playing roster comes from the dominant the Marlins and the Rats with a sprinkling of talent from the other member clubs, Gordon and Northern Suburbs.

There are 16 Marlins, nine Rats, four Highlanders and a trio of talent from Northern Suburbs.

“It’s all about becoming one team over the next couple of weeks but the combinations that we will taken into the start of the NRC from our club teams will be vital,” head coach Geoff Townsend said.

“Manly have without doubt have been the dominant team in the Shute Shield this year and they are playing some great footy – we want to take that energy and skill into this competition.

“The forwards at Manly have had a great year, while some of the pizzazz that we have seen from the Warringah backline has been great. Then there’s the talent that Gordon and Norths will bring to the table.”

The Rays’ three Wallaby ambassadors are Michael Hooper, and Scott Fardy.

Pek Cowan was originally announced by the ARU as the Rays’ fourth ambassador but he has been called back into the Perth Spirit squad if national team duties allow.

Matt Lucas and Cam Crawford are the only currently contracted Super Rugby players, although Luke and Josh Holmes as well as Scott Daruda have had experience at that level.

Townsend said he was unconcerned about the limited number of contracted Super Rugby players in his squad saying that the Rays’ hunger to do well in this start up venture will surprise many.

“In many ways we are what the NRC is all about,” Townsend said.

“It’s (the NRC) about giving guys at club level exposure at a higher level and while at this stage some of the names that you see in our squad may not be widely known, I reckon that will change as the season unfolds.

“There are numerous guys in this team who have come through the development pathways and others that haven’t that are more than capable of playing Super Rugby and beyond.

“Our job at the Rays is to give them the opportunity to show what they can do. It’s an exciting time for us all.”

Five squad members – Jack Dempsey, Harry Jones, James Cunningham, Michael Adams and Josh Holmes – have been called into a NSW Waratahs Sevens squad that will play in tournaments in Limerick and London.

Squad member Cam Crawford was in line for a call up but final university exams and a desire to make an impact with the Rays saw him stay at home.

Crawford played several games for the Waratahs this year and is off to Melbourne to take a two-year contract with the Rebels.

The squad:

WALLABIES: Michael Hooper (Manly), Wycliff Palu (Manly), Scott Fardy (Warringah).

NSW WARATAHS: Matt Lucas (Manly), Cam Crawford (Northern Suburbs).

FORWARDS: Ryan Melrose (Manly), Michael Wells (Northern Suburbs), Sam Ward (Warringah), Kotoni Ale (Manly), Jack Dempsey (Gordon), Harry Bergelin (Manly), James Cunningham (Northern Suburbs), Ed Gower (Manly), Dane Maraki (Manly), Nick Fraser (Gordon), Luke Holmes (Warringah), Dave Porecki (Manly), Mitch Lewis (Manly), Kevin McNamara (Northern Suburbs), Boyd Killingworth (Warringah), Rory O’Connor (Manly).

BACKS: Sam VaeVae (Manly), Hamish Angus (Warringah), Scott Daruda (Manly), Josh Holmes (Warringah), Dave Feltscheer (Warringah), Sireli Tagicakibau

(Warringah), Harry Jones (Warringah), Michael Adams (Warringah), Brian Sefania (Manly), Tom Matthews (Gordon), Terry Preston (Gordon), Maile Hingano (Manly).

HEAD COACH: Geoff Townsend (Gordon). ASSISTANT COACHES: Haig Sare (Warringah), Damien Cummins (Manly), Michael Lipman (Warringah).

MORE INFORMATION from Mark Cashman at 0416 063 735 or email him at [email protected]