BON RECAPS A BIG WIN WITH KIRWAN
McGregor ready to star for Dragons after taking out schools comp
NATHANIEL CHAMBERS
YOUNG gun Bon McGregor is excited to return to the Nightcliff Dragons after a two-year stint at Kirwan State High School, which he played for in their 2019 NRL Schoolboys Cup winning side
The 19-year-old returned to Darwin in November last year, and has set his sights on helping Nightcliff get to the top under new head coach Reg Rose.
Despite the COVID-19 pandemic putting the 2020 NRL NT season’s start date in question, the forward is keeping himself in shape so he can be ready.
“I’m pretty excited to be returning to Nightcliff. They’ve struggled a bit in recent years but there’s been a shift looking forward,” McGregor told the
Territorian.
Sunday
“It’s a mental shift with players taking accountability for their rugby and I’m excited to be a part of that, have some fun and try to win a premiership with them.
“At the moment I’m just focusing on personal workouts.
“I can’t get to the gym so I’m just doing stuff at home to keep myself ready because no one knows when we will be able to get back out there.”
McGregor got the opportunity to attend Kirwan State High in Townsville under the recommendation of NRL NT pathways manager Duncan MacGillivray, gifting him a unique opportunity to pursue the sport and his studies.
He was a starting forward in the Bears’ hard-fought 16-10 grand final victory over NSW powerhouse Westfields Sports High, with the side clawing back from a 10-0 deficit.
“It still doesn’t feel real. The team put in all year and exceeded the expectations a lot of people had in us, including ourselves,” McGregor said.
“In that final I think it just came down to us training harder. We had the much smaller side, but we just held in harder and stuck to our training even when the scoreline started to look daunting.
“That experience has improved me heaps as both a rugby player and a person.
“Living in someone else’s house for two years and being put in that environment where you can’t put a toe out of line and you’re held accountable really matured me.”