The Kiama Phantoms named Alex Boles the first recipient of the inaugural Darcy Bond Medal – in memory of the fun-loving Phantom representative.
The Kiama Oztag Phantoms and the wider Oztag community were devastated after the passing of 22-year-old, Darcy Bond in August last year.
Darcy was a passionate member of Kiama Oztag. He represented the Phantoms at State Cup level, the Vipers at Nationals and was also a current Australian Mixed 20s representative.
Pictured: Darcy Bond for the Vipers Men’s 20s
Pictured: Darcy Bond for the Australian Tagaroos Men’s 20s at the 2019 Invitational Challenge
In 2021, Kiama Oztag introduced the Darcy Bond medal – an annual award that recognises a senior representative player whose passion and devotion to the game reflects that of Darcy.
Kiama Oztag Licensee, Ross Thomas said that Darcy’s character made him the type of person everyone loved, and the type of player you wanted on your team.
“As a player, he not only had great skills, but he was just so positive… no matter what, he would lift people,” he said.
Thomas said Darcy contributed immensely to the club on a regular basis, whether it be refereeing, helping with administration or coaching representative sides.
“The comp would not have run as well as it did years ago and up until last year, without Darcy – he made the competition better,”
“He had that same positive, can-do attitude outside of playing… Not having that vibrant person around anymore is what’s so upsetting for me and so many in our community,”
“The Darcy Bond medal is an opportunity for our club to honour his memory,” he said.
Pictured: Bond Family at the presentation of the Darcy Bond Medal
Photo credit: Ross Thomas
At a special ceremony in Kiama, Thomas and the Bond family presented the inaugural medal to long-serving Phantom representative and good friend of Darcy’s, Alex Boles.
“I’m blown away, to be honest – it’s left me a little speechless,” Boles said during the presentation.
“It’s really special to receive the first-ever Darcy Bond Medal because he meant so much to both me and this great club,” Boles told the South Coast Register.
The first recipient of the Darcy Bond Medal, Alex Boles Photo credit: Ross Thomas
Each year, Phantoms coaches will gather at the NSW Senior State Cup and award the medal to a player from any senior team that reflects the same attitudes as Darcy.
“Both myself and the coaches will agree on a player who is upbeat, vibrant, encourages people and brings the team together; who may not be the best player but for example, attended all training sessions,” Thomas said.
“Whilst that recipient may not know Darcy personally, when we present the medal up there at State Cup, we will make sure everyone knows why this medal is so important and why it was named after Darcy,” he said.
Kiama Phantoms at the 2019 Senior State Cup Photo credit: Kiama Oztag Facebook Page
Darcy’s sister Whitney Schadel alongside husband, James have since launched The Elephant Crew – a mental health organisation that while helping people speak out about mental health issues, strives to make an impact on the current mental health system.
“We have values, we have goals, which are not just talk – it’s about turning that talk into action, like paying the gap for people who can’t afford to see a health professional – which in itself can sometimes take months,” James Schadel told the South Coast Register.
With the slogan ‘Life is better with you in it’, The Elephant Crew has also introduced their own merchandise with all proceeds going to a Darcy Bond memorial trust fund, which they hope will one day fund a mental health facility in Kiama.
Numbers to call if you or anyone you know needs help are:
Tournament Director, Luke Manahan has announced that the NSW Senior City v Country has been postponed to January, 2022 due to heavy rainfall.
The South Coast has experienced heavy rainfall over the last couple of days with more rainfall forecast today (9/12) and tomorrow (10/12).
The groundsman completed an inspection this morning & he indicated the fields were unplayable and would remain unplayable on Saturday.
Regardless, Wollongong Council have since closed ALL fields.
Therefore, Australian Oztag (AO) will postpone the tournament to Saturday 29 January, 2022 at Sid Parrish Park, Figtree NSW (same venue).
Contingency plans to move the venue were considered, however fields in those councils have also been closed & other options have been negated by cricket.
We also had to consider travel arrangements by players coming from regional areas – it’s important to give these players as much notice as possible.
AO’s goal is to play this tournament to give the selected players the opportunity to represent their region; hence the postponement to a new date.
However, if the tournament cannot be completed on the 29th January it will be cancelled & the rego portion of the player fee refunded.
NSW Oztag paid a visit to Southwest Oztag last week and had the pleasure of chatting to License holder and Hall of Fame inductee, Paul Peel.
The Picton local has played Oztag since its inception in 1992; his association with the game has since branched into becoming South West Oztag Licensee, alongside wife, Caroline.
Paul started out playing for a local team in the first Liverpool competition and describes his introduction to the game as ‘quite comical’.
“Coming off a double ACL knee reconstruction, I played the first five games in knee calipers… I was like Robo cop,” he laughed.
From that first season, Paul was selected in the Liverpool Men’s Opens side which went on to win the second ever NSW State Cup.
Paul continued to represent Liverpool for an additional five years, before he and Caroline moved to Picton and started a family.
Come 2001, the pair kicked off Picton Oztag, which Paul both played in and went on to represent at State and National level for several years.
Pictured: Paul representing Southwest Razorbacks at Australian Championships
Southwest Oztag
As of 2005, Paul and Caroline became the official Licensees of Southwest Oztag and decided to start up competitions in Camden and the Southern Highlands.
Southwest Oztag now run senior competitions at Camden, Mittagong, Oran Park and Picton, as well as junior competitions at Moss Vale and Picton.
“We have over 300 teams at South West Oztag, with Camden seniors probably being our largest competition,” Peel said
Both Paul and Caroline are extremely proud of the growth of their competitions over the years, which are now played across various nights and venues.
“It’s lovely to attend our venues, old and new, and see how our game can branch out and be so consistently enjoyable for everyone,” Peel said.
Pictured: Paul refereeing at Picton Men’s competition
Paul made extremely clear that South West Oztag would not be where it is without his wife, Caroline and her constant work behind-the-scenes – at both a domestic and representative level.
“I would be nothing without my wife helping me… she is the backbone of the operation,” Peel said.
“Caroline and Prue do a lot of back-end work, when it comes to representative selections, uniforms and tournament paperwork,”
“We both have day jobs, so it can be quite time-consuming, but we love it,” he said
Pictured: Paul & wife, Caroline
Australian Representative
Not only is Paul a valued member of Southwest Oztag, both on and off the field, but he was also an honorable Australian representative for 19 years.
“I was fortunate enough to be selected in Australian sides on 15 occasions, between 1999 up until 2018 where I retired from Australian selection,” Peel said.
In this period, Paul represented the Australian Men’s 30’s, 35’s, and 40’s.
2015 World Cup
2016 Trans Tasman
2016 Trans Tasman
He was inducted into the AO Hall of Fame in 2013, and later recognised for his 15 years of service to the Australian Tagaroos.
“The highlight of my playing career was being named the Australian Tour Captain and Flag bearer for the 2018 World Cup, alongside fellow Hall of Famer, Michele Reaney,” Peel said.
Pictured: Paul & Michele Reaney – 2018 Australian Tour Captains
2018 World Cup
However, when asked of his fondest Oztag memories, and why he loves the game, he did not hesitate in his responses.
“My fondest memory would be playing Oztag with my children at a domestic level and coaching them at State Cup,” Peel said.
“I love the game because it accommodates everybody – all ages and skill levels can play the game and contribute,” he said.
AO wish to commend both Paul and Caroline on their continual service to the game and the growing success of Southwest Oztag.
AO General Manager, Bill Harrigan has released a statement following the NSW Government’s recent announcement on the return to community sport at 80% double vaccinations.
Hi Everyone,
Great news is Oztag will be back in 2021.
After the NSW Government announcement on Monday, what we do know is this:
Community sport will return after we hit 80% double vaccinations in the community of 16 years of age and above (mid to late October).
We know it is only for double vaxxed people until the 1st of December. This will include parents and spectators only attending if double dosed. From the 1st, all can participate & attend.
We must abide by the one person per 2 square metres or capped at 5000 people if the venue is big enough.
There has been no mention of the ages allowed to return, only that we can return when double vaxed hits 80% of the people 16 and above.
So the questioned is asked, can under 16’s play without being double vaxed? We have asked the question and waiting on confirmation.
I read it as over 16 must be double vaxed and under 16 don’t but can return. TBC
Therefore Oztag associations are gearing up to return to play for Summer 21/22.
You will need to search your local associations social media or website for details on when they will start and their registration protocols.
You can find websites via oztag.com.au & search locations.
We will continue to update detail as we are informed.
The International Tag Federation recently announced the inception of an International Tag Series to be played across three countries in 2022.
In July, the International Tag Federation (ITF) announced the second postponement of the 2021 Tag World Cup (TWC) to be held in Limerick, Ireland 2022.
However, the ITF assured nations that the postponed Tag World Cup will still be hosted by the University of Limerick and the Irish Tag Rugby Association in August, 2023.
To ensure the International players who were selected for the 2021 TWC still have the opportunity to represent their country, the ITF developed a unique event that takes COVID-19 travel restrictions into account whilst giving players international competition.
ITF Chairman, Stuart McConnell was pleased to announce the 2022 International Tag series and the three areas of the world that will host the events.
“The ITF is extremely excited to unveil the tournament and the logo that will be on proud display in Europe, Australia and New Zealand at the same time that the postponed Tag World Cup would have been played,” McConnell said.
AO General Manager and ITF Board member, Bill Harrigan, who proposed the event to the committee, said the series will grant all players the long-awaited opportunity to represent their country.
“We just don’t know when overseas travel will open up so this tournament will allow all our international players the opportunity to represent their heritage countries safely within Australia, New Zealand & Ireland,” Harrigan said.
“All the players who were selected for the original TWC 2021 will finally get the opportunity to wear their jersey and play,” he said.
The ITF ensured that eligible heritage nations will receive an invitation to this tournament in the coming weeks.
Event dates for the 2022 International Tag Series:
Europe – University of Limerick, Ireland 5th – 7th August 2022
Australia – Coffs Harbour 5th – 7th August 2022
New Zealand – Auckland, Bruce Pullman Park, 11th – 13th November 2022
The SportUNE Oztag competition kicked off in Armidale last week, a new and exciting opportunity to promote the wellbeing of the University and the regional community.
Staff from Sport University of New England (SportUNE), reached out to the team at Australian Oztag (AO), eager to start up a local competition at the University’s campus in Armidale – a city in the Northern Tablelands region of New South Wales.
After much planning, the region’s first Oztag competition kicked off last Monday night, 19 July 2021, which saw ten teams compete in the Mixed division.
SportUNE Oztag Competition Coordinator, Justin Shaw deemed the opening night of competition a great success, anticipating more fast-paced, high-scoring games ahead of week two.
“We wanted this season to be a fun introduction to the game of Oztag and round one did not disappoint… despite the 3-degree weather we still ran all games, and everyone had a blast,” Shaw said.
“There were some really high-quality skills on display… I think by the end of the season, all the teams will be well versed in these skills, which will make for a tight and entertaining finals series,” he said.
SportUNE Oztag first night of competition. Photo Credit: SportUNE
Shaw said the community response has been fantastic since the competition’s inception.
“We really didn’t expect to get as many teams as we have, particularly in the Armidale’s Winter, so we’re stoked,” Shaw said.
“We couldn’t be more grateful to the players and community for their support in our first season; it drives us to make the competition better every week,” he said.
Shaw said he reached out to AO to discuss the potential of an Oztag competition in Armidale after witnessing the success of Tamworth Oztag over the past few years.
“We believe Armidale has fantastic potential to act as a middle ground between Tamworth and the coastal clubs like Coffs Harbour,” Shaw said.
“Luke Manahan has been such a fantastic help; Garry Semms has gone above and beyond to help train our referees and staff to ensure we’re prepared for a great competition,”
AO staff, Liam Haddock and Luke Manahan visit SportUNE Oztag prior to competition. Pictured with Coordinator, Justin Shaw.
“Pam Potts from Tamworth Oztag has also been a guiding presence and really helped out with firsthand advice on starting and running the comp,” he said.
SportUNE has always strived to deliver high quality competitions across a variety of sports, and it is believed that Oztag pairs really well with their criteria.
“One of our goals is to add value to the educational experience of students through the development of ‘life skills’ via Club and Committee involvement, and participation in sports administration, coaching, refereeing, and other accreditation courses,” Shaw said.
“Oztag fits in very well with this, especially when it ties in training for referees, and educational days with amazing athletes,” he said.
Shaw has big hopes for the future of SportUNE Oztag, the main being to introduce more divisions to the competition in 2022, including Men’s, Women’s, Mixed, and possibly a Kid’s division.
“Hopefully when the current COVID-19 situation is under control, we will have a strong competition and player base to interact with other Oztag organisations,” Shaw said.
“Perhaps we could collaborate with Tamworth and Coffs Harbour Oztag, for some bigger and bolder events,”
“These things will be in our sights, but for now, we want to focus on delivering a high-quality competition, to make sure we have the right foundations,” he said.
Although registrations for the current season are now closed, Shaw encourages the Armidale community to follow the SportUNE Oztag journey online and prepare for the next season by rallying friends, family colleagues or classmates.
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