Dubbo CYMS coach Tim Ryan pleased with much improved backline depth
Nick Guthrie - Daily Liberal
Just keep getting better and that bit more fit.
That’s what CYMS coach Tim Ryan wants from his side over the coming weeks.
After four rounds of the 2017 Group 11 season the Fishies find themselves in the familiar position of being alone at the top of the ladder.
Forbes’ loss to Nyngan last week means Ryan’s man are now the only undefeated side left in the competition and the Fishies will be favoured to keep that undefeated run going on Sunday at Wellington’s Kennard Park.
The Cowboys have shown plenty of improvement this season, sitting fifth after back-to-back wins over Westside and Narromine, but Ryan’s focus is on his own side.
“You still want to improve and work on those combinations. We’ve got a squad of about 21 and we’ve been trying to give everyone a run and we’ve been lucky not to have any injuries,” he said.
“They (Wellington) are always a good side and it’s always a good game there at Kennard. We played them in a trial and it was a pretty good game, it was close so we expect a tough game again.”
That trial was a high-scoring affair, with the Fishies running out 46-30 winners.
The CYMS defence has tightened up since then with just 52 points being conceded in the opening four rounds of the season.
After this weekend more of a third than the regular season would have been completed but CYMS is still not at its best, according to Ryan.
A shorter pre-season and lesser workload early in the year has been a deliberate ploy for CYMS, with Ryan keen on having his side peaking at exactly the right time later in the year.
“We just want to keep getting better and fitter,” he said.
“We’ve got a new halves combnination and they’re working along. ‘Bonho’ (Alex Bonham) is entrenched in the side but we’ve got a new six (Brad Pickering) and hopefully they continue to improve.”
A player who has improved out of sight is Wade Kavanagh.
The teenager came into the side last season as a fringe player and then a weapon used of the bench.
This season he had made one of the centre positions his own and has been as good as any other Fishie during the opening four rounds.
The backline has been further boosted by Joeby Vetaukula, who has settled in on the wing after arriving from Fiji.
“Wade has come on in leaps and bounds. He can play anywhere and he handles it and he’s made that centre his,” Ryan said.
“And Joeby is getting there. He hasn’t been around long but he’s doing okay. It’s been a bit of a position in the last few years where we haven’t had a heap of backs so it’s good to have them.”
Sunday’s action starts at 10.30am with the League Tag before the another leg in the Gungie Origin series.