Rugby league club up and running

BENDIGO Crushers president Mikey Dynon is hoping rugby league can become a permanent and enduring part of the sporting landscape in Bendigo.

The long-term vision comes a few weeks after the fledgling club’s first exhibition match against Sunbury United Tigers.

Their first taste of action has the Crushers frantically pursuing their goal of entering senior and junior teams in official competitions from next year.

Dynon said the inspiration for a Bendigo-based rugby league club had stemmed from a conversation with his son and an opportunity to cater for an untapped sporting demographic.

“I took my son to a Melbourne Storm NRL game and on the way home he said, ‘dad, I want to play rugby league’,” he said.

“I had to explain to him that we didn’t have a team in Bendigo.

“I know there has been a few attempts to gain some traction – three in fact. Ones that lasted for a season or two and one that didn’t even get up.

“We put something out on Facebook to see if anyone was interested and it turns out there were people.

“We organised a meeting and things took off from there.”

While the club was officially formed late last year, players had not donned the club’s striking yellow and blue with a splash of black uniforms in a match against registered opposition until earlier this month.

The Crushers have a couple more scratch matches and exhibition appearances lined-up this year and will target some tournaments in readiness for what they hope will be their first senior season in the Melbourne-based Storm Metro Premiership in 2026.

Dynon said the reception to the Crushers had been really positive.

“We’ve been training Wednesday nights out at Epsom and we do training for all ages, so anyone can join in” he said.

“We are finding plenty of interest.

“There was some thought it might be players who had played (rugby) union, but in our first game, we had only one guy who had played rugby league.

“Most of them are guys who have moved down here from elsewhere, or have been here and have followed rugby league and grown interested in playing.

“We have one guy who travels over to train from Maryborough, so it’s building.”

Dynon said the Crushers were keen to get the local community on-side and involved.

They have already achieved some success on that front, with the public playing a pivotal role in choosing the club’s name and logo.

A public vote saw the Crushers name chosen over three other options – the Bears, Blue Tongues and Nuggets.

Dynon, whose initial leaning was towards Nuggets as acknowledgement of the city’s rich gold mining history, said Crushers was the overwhelming choice.

While there are still some important boxes to be ticked and some more players to be signed, Dynon is confident the Crushers will be running out for their first official season next year.

“We played nines in our first exhibition game, but the players feel they are ready for 13-a-side,” he said.

“We only need a few more numbers for a full list and we have a good eight months or so to do it.”

Dynon believed the emergence of a rugby league team in Bendigo would appeal to a previously uncatered class of athletes and would not detract from the success of the city’s rugby union club the Fighting Miners.

Plans are afoot for a return match against Sunbury United, this time in Bendigo, while a few other clubs have expressed interest in playing exhibition matches.

A grander goal would be to be ready for the Harmony Cup in Melbourne in late October.

In the meantime, the Crushers will consider entering a team in the Bendigo Touch Football Association to maintain fitness and camaraderie.

The Crushers train every Wednesday night at Epsom Huntly Recreation Reserve field one at 6.15pm.

For more details and sponsorship opportunities, email [email protected] or visit the club’s Facebook page.