By Jamie Parsons

Rankins Springs becomes the last Proten side to host the annual knockout on Saturday. The Rankins Springs Sport & Recreation Ground has recently undergone renovations on their dressing sheds and toilets, extending to include new showers and toilet stalls and will be (just) finished in time for game day.

The competition is hoping for their biggest day of footy yet, with all six mens sides and all six womens sides set to compete in 14 games of football. No knockout yet has had all womens sides competing, with the first womens knockout in 2022 featuring only three sides and last year’s knockout missing Rankins Springs. The mens play half their usual game time with 15 minute halves while the women will revert back to the 9-minute halves they played in the first years of the competition.

The knockout draw is the same for both men and womens, with games alternating throughout the day instead of the usual 3 womens games followed by 3 mens games in the regular season rounds. Pools for the day are as follows:

Pool A – Rankins Springs, Barellan, Ivanhoe

Pool B – Narrandera, Hillston, Goolgowi

Narrandera come into the knockout as the most successful side, having won three of the five events so far.

Despite their success, they were unable to field a side last year at Ivanhoe. Other previous winners have been Hillston in 2018 and Ivanhoe in 2023, with the Lizards winning three straight in 2019, 2021 & 2022.

Rankins Springs are the only side not to have made a final, with Goolgowi runners-up in 2018, Barellan in 2019 & 2023, Ivanhoe in 2021 & Hillston in 2022.

In the women’s knockouts the winners have been shared, with a Narrandera/Rankins Springs combined side winning in 2022 and Barellan coming away with it in their undefeated season last year.

Saturday will be the first hit-out for 11 of the 12 teams competing, with only Rankins Springs mens playing a trial match so far, going down 26-20 to West Wyalong in March.

Many of the mens teams have new coaches, including Goolgowi, Hillston, Ivanhoe & Rankins Springs.

Other than back-to-back premiers Narrandera who are sure to be strong as always and Rankins Springs who fielded a strong side in the trial and should be up for it at home, it’s a mystery how the other teams will turn out on Saturday.

There was a call to arms on the Proten Cup facebook page last week regarding player numbers.

While player numbers have been up and down in the past, there has only been one instance where a team was worried about folding, with Barellan in 2021 struggling early for players before rallying to finish 2^nd that year.

This year there’s been a few worried committees with lack of player numbers, with both Hillston men’s and Goolgowi women’s unsure of having enough to field teams in the knockout.

Although certain to have a side come Saturday, Ivanhoe Men and Women, Hillston Women and Rankins Springs Women have also seen concerning numbers at training and need better player commitment fast.

The good thing about the Proten Cup, probably the best thing in many supporters’ eyes, is that players from other clubs have always jumped on the bench for those teams who turn up short, with the women’s comp especially usually seeing players back up for other clubs every week.

Hopefully all teams will turn up ready to go on Saturday, knowing that their mates in other jerseys will help them out if needed.

Come Round 1 all clubs need to be certain they can play as otherwise the draw and structure of the competition can’t work properly. 

Full Knockout Schedule:

10am – Women’s Hillston v Goolgowi
10.25am – Women’s Rankins Springs v Barellan
10.50am – Men’s Hillston v Goolgowi
11.30am – Men’s Rankins Springs v Barellan
12.10pm – Women’s Goolgowi v Narrandera
12.35pm – Women’s Rankins Springs v Ivanhoe
1.00pm – Men’s Goolgowi v Narrandera
1.40pm – Mens Rankins Springs v Ivanhoe
2.20pm – Women’s Hillston v Narrandera
2.45pm – Women’s Ivanhoe v Barellan
3.10pm – Men’s Hillston v Narrandera
3.50pm – Men’s Ivanhoe v Barellan

4.30pm – Women’s Final
5.00pm – Men’s Final

Cover Photo: Last year’s victorious Ivanhoe Knockout team (Supplied)