When Jack Todd made his NRL debut with Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs earlier this year, carloads of friends travelled down the New England Highway from Tamworth to Sydney to watch him play.
The Dungowan Cowboys junior will return back up the highway next weekend for the NSWRL’s Regional Magic Round featuring five matches from Round 10 action in The Knock-On Effect NSW Cup all at the same venue – Scully Park in Tamworth.
“The whole town will get around it,” Todd told nswrl.com.au
“From what I’ve heard already people are very keen to see all the NSW Cup teams and players.
“It’s a sensational thing that they’re doing. I hope it comes Tamworth’s way again.”
The Bulldogs will play the Parramatta Eels on Sunday 11 May, following Newtown Jets v St George Illawarra Dragons, and Manly Warringah Sea Eagles v Sydney Roosters. Two games will be played on Saturday 10 May – Penrith Panthers v Western Suburbs Magpies and the Newcastle Knights v North Sydney Bears.
Todd said it was a measure of what Rugby League meant to regional NSW that so many of his family and friends made the 800-kilometre round trip to see him play against the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks in Round Three of the NRL.
“A lot of my friends from up Tamworth way made the trek down to Sydney,” Todd said.
“There were a lot of people there… I think about 50 or 60, which was pretty cool.
“People just love the game no matter where they come from in NSW. And that love is really strong in Tamworth and all the districts around it.”
Todd plays lock and came to the Bulldogs in 2019. He was part of the 2023 Premiership-winning Jersey Flegg Cup team that beat the Roosters 22-20.
He is into his fourth year of NSW Cup with the Belmore-based club.
“The Bulldogs feel like my second home,” he said.
“There’s such a great culture there – it’s a really tight group at the moment.
“Everyone is a mate and training sessions never feel like hard work although they work us hard.
“It was a pretty special moment for me to make my (NRL) debut since I’ve taken those steps of playing Flegg, NSW Cup and now NRL all with the Bulldogs.”
Click here for tickets to NSWRL’s Regional Magic Round.
