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Sydney Subbies 2025

Crashy

Crashy

Nicholas Shehadie (39)
Going by all the good work being done and publicised, I would be surprised if its less than 4 teams (including a women's team and a colts). Hope it pans out that way.
 
Crashy

Crashy

Nicholas Shehadie (39)
Odyssey_Park the 2nd said:
I would imagine they will land in Div 3 if they manage to hold onto what they were running in the Canberra comp. 2 Grades and Colts. If they only get 1 grade side up then maybe a Div 4?
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Looks like Div 3 from the below. I know Penrith RSL have a juniors but do the Emus have a juniors as well? Are there many rugby playing schools in the area that would feed into them? (I know Blue Mountains Grammar do but assume they play for the Blue Mountains, if at all after school.

Emus look to restore pride in famous jumper

The countdown is officially on until the return of the mighty Penrith Emus.

Next month the club will return to the paddock after more than a year in the wilderness when they battle Epping in a pre-season trial on March 22 and Hills in a pre-season trial on March 29.

It will be the first time that fans have seen the Emus play since they were ousted from the ACT’s John I Dent Cup in late 2023.

This season, the Emus have joined the NSW Suburban Rugby Union competition, also known as “Subbies”, as they look to win back support and interest from the local public after a rollercoaster decade of turmoil and poor results.

Penrith Emus Vice-President and Life Member Ian Joliffe said “the vibe is great” as the club charges towards its comeback season.

“It’s going very well! We’ve managed to drag a few of the older guys back to help get things going again – rejuvenate the place,” he told the Weekender.

“Our new coach Daine Walker is very promising and has a number of players lined up. There’s been a few sponsors drop in over the last few months as well, which is great!”

Emus players met for the first time last weekend when they were put through their paces during a gruelling fitness test at Nepean Rugby Park.

Last Saturday morning’s session was the first step in getting the team back on the field before the Subbies season kicks off on Saturday, April 12.

Joliffe said seeing his beloved Emus back is a sight for sore eyes.

“We want to see a club in the district. We need to have rugby in Penrith. It’s a passion of mine and many of my friends,” he said.

“We’ve previously struggled in the John I Dent Cup and Shute Shield. Our players always seemed to get poached by the richer clubs and it’s very hard to raise the needed funds to compete in a professional competition… that’s why Subbies is the right fit for us.”

The Emus are yet to be graded by the league, but they are hopeful of being slotted into Division 3, which will require them to field two grade teams and one Colts side.

Joliffe said he is confident that the Emus will be a great source of pride for the community, just like they were when he first arrived at the club some three decades ago.

“The only way to achieve that is to get a half decent team on the paddock who can win a few games. I think that will bring the people back and the level we are looking at, should be the right level,” he declared.

“Wins on the board always help with the morale of the players and also helps bring in the spectators.”

But victories aren’t the only way the Emus plan to bring the crowds back to Nepean Rugby Park for what will be their 60th anniversary season.

“We’re bringing back the Emu burger! It will be sizzling away once again,” Joliffe confirmed.
 
Pfitzy

Pfitzy

Nathan Sharpe (72)
There would be a spot for them in Div 3 as Subbies looks to stabilise as many DIvisions as possible. That would be good for them I think.
 
F

Footyhead#2

Chris McKivat (8)
I am a little bit more sceptical about the Emus chances. Their administration have continually bashed the idea of joining subbies for 10+ years as they thought it was beneath them. They were approached by Suburban Rugby after their disqualification from Shute Shield and they flat out rejected it, instead moving to the Canberra comp 3 hours away!? Now they expect the rugby community to embrace their participation in Subbies and come flooding back?

Also it has been 18 months since their last game of competition rugby, it is extremely hard to pull together 3 teams from scratch, especially when Blue Mountains are flying and well established...

I hope I am wrong.
 
Pfitzy

Pfitzy

Nathan Sharpe (72)
Do you have reasons?

For me: this seems the only real option they've got in the short to medium term, to get the club back up and running.

My personal opinion is that it would be very difficult for them to get back into Premier Rugby (SRU) unless something changes substantially with the landscape West of the M3
 
Crashy

Crashy

Nicholas Shehadie (39)
although the amateur policy makes things very different for them. need players that like playing the game that dont need / want the pocket money. A bit hard out there when mungo survives only with paying players.
 
O

Odyssey_Park the 2nd

Bob McCowan (2)
Penrith will be OK this year. There will be a lot of people rooting for them. The question will be can they sustain it in coming years after the initial push subsides. Especially with a club like Mountains having so much success in the last few years.

Good luck to them, where they land Will depend on the make up of other clubs across these divisions. If they can get 3 teams and colts then they may be a better fit than some of the Div 2 clubs based off last year.
 
H

Here To Do

Stan Wickham (3)
You'd have to think some of the past players will be getting to Nepean Park this season to try and get the club re-established and on firm ground in the lower grades - I'd imagine a lot of them wouldn't have been willing to travel, but if there's local games they'd be putting the boots on again.

Div 3 and 4 are probably the floor for where they will land, but Div 2 might be a bridge too far at the moment given most clubs were running 4 grades AND Colts last season (with a few outliers). At the same time, Blue Mountains may well see a fair dip in numbers, particularly in their lower grades and Halligans, with the offers of playing a few grades up and getting almost guaranteed game time at the Emus.
 
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