James Smart attacking the line back in 2017.
The Wagga Kangaroos have been at the pinnacle of the Group 9 competition throughout the majority of the 2025 season and are currently on track to win another Group 9 Minor Premiership, having won a staggering 10 out of 11 matches so far.
Heading the Roos to potential Grand Final glory are two very familiar faces among the Gundagai faithful: local Gundy boy James Smart and Grand Final hero Nathan Rose.
Smart burst onto the scene with the Tigers in 2011. At just 21, he captain-coached his boyhood club to the Grand Final, where they eventually went down 20-18 against South City. Despite that bitter end to his debut season, the talented half went on to enjoy great success in black and gold, winning two Group 9 Premierships and making an additional two Grand Finals.
Rose’s Gundagai stint saw him go from villain to hero in the eyes of the Tigers faithful. His brilliant play for South City had previously seen the Tigers lose both the 2016 and 2017 Grand Finals to their Wagga-based rivals. Rose then made the move to Gundagai in 2022, steering them to an emphatic 34-4 win over the Young Cherrypickers.
Despite their strong Gundagai connections, the pair never shared the field as teammates in black and gold. Smart left at the beginning of the 2022 season to link up with his current side. Rose would join his current halves partner the following year, and together, the two have since exerted dominance on the competition, finishing as Grand Final runners-up in back-to-back seasons in 2023 and 2024.
That brings us back to the 2025 season, with the duo looking poised to feature in a third consecutive Grand Final together. They are two ball-running halves, not too dissimilar from Melbourne’s Munster and Hughes combination. Two veterans of the competition with plenty left in the tank. Two leaders elevating their side to new levels, and two former Tigers desperate to show their old club what they’re missing out on.
Standing in their way are the likes of the Temora Dragons, led by former NRL halfback Josh McCrone. Surrounded by talent, McCrone has the Dragons firing; despite the odd misstep this season, they currently sit just behind the front-running Roos. And who could forget our local Gundagai Tigers, still getting glistening performances from older heads like Derek Hay, James Morgan, Tyron Gorman, and others.
Sitting below the Tigers but still a threat are Gundagai’s old rivals down the road, the Tumut Blues, who have enjoyed a bounce-back season after welcoming back former players who featured prominently in their last Grand Final run. There’s also no counting out the reigning Premier Young Cherrypickers, who’ve shown great heart in the absence of over 15 first-team starters. The biggest problem the Cherrypickers may face this season is making the finals to begin with; following their game against the Albury Thunder, the Pickers are in serious jeopardy of securing a top-five spot.
Smart and Rose are born winners; it’s something they’ve done their whole lives. Smart is the embodiment of perseverance, never hanging his head in defeat, bouncing back and coming back a better player despite his age climbing with his injury count. When healthy, there’s no better partnership in the competition – that much is evident. Reality is often a cruel one, and this rings true for the Tigers, as the thing standing in the way of them reliving Group 9 glory is two old friends.
-Tully Potts
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