Boys make 700km trip to keep league dream alive

A ROMA side will make the journey to Toowoomba each weekend to stay involved in rugby league in 2020.

Roma will bring an U15s side into the Toowoomba Junior Rugby League for the 2020 season. Photo: Contributed

RUGBY LEAGUE: The chance to lace up the boots means everything to some, just ask the boys from Roma.

The U15s side, comprised of players from the teams Roma District Rugby League competition, will make the 700km round trip each weekend to play in the Toowoomba Junior Rugby League.

It’s a commitment that many would put in the ‘too hard’ basket, but coach Bryce Holdsworth said its second nature for this determined group.

“They’re just a different bunch of kids out here,” Holdsworth said.

“They’re committed with their sport, and travel is part and parcel out here. It just doesn’t faze them.

“One of the lads comes from Chinchilla to play for us, and we’ve got another from Charleville which is another three hours away.

“He travelled all the way to training and back for a 1 ½ hour session on Tuesday night.”

With the junior league cutting off at U14s and the seniors starting at U16s, teams in and around Roma found themselves in a tough predicament.

The junior season has been given the green light to go ahead, however the cancellation of the seniors has left many without a game.

“After the seniors cancelled their season, we were contacted to see if there was the possibility of putting an U15s side together,” Holdsworth said.

“One of the parents contacted me about joining Toowoomba. I spoke to people and it went from there.

“Within a week we had approval from the TJRL. All the QRL staff in Toowoomba were helpful and guided us in getting a COVID safety plan in place.

“All the clubs in Roma have helped us out. Roma Cities donated their minibus (to travel to games).”

The Roma Districts team will get its season underway today against Valleys at Herb Steinhort Oval.

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