'It's good for the town': Police Cup gives Nash footy fix

Nash, a senior constable at the Tamworth Police Station, has played in the competition for 13 years and is one of several Tamworth players to have represented Country North in the last two days.

Although their campaign has not gone to plan, with three defeats from three games, Nash thoroughly enjoyed the chance to catch up with colleagues and former teammates on the field.

"We all sort of know each other and cross over, so it's good to catch up with everyone and think we're a bit younger than what we are," Nash said.

"We go out, play a bit of footy and see a different side of people than what we do at work."

During his career with the police, Nash has previously represented Country South and Eastern Suburbs.

Now that he has retired from club football, the Police Bank Cup provides just enough action for Nash and some of his fellow retirees to get their fix without the prolonged physical toll of a full season.

But despite the decreased risk to their bodies, the competitive spirit remains alive and well within the players.

And it is this instinct which left the Country North players "disappointed" with their performances across Monday and Tuesday.

"We made it to the semi-finals last year for the first time, and we really were aiming to make the semi-finals," Nash said.

"And then we had a couple of unlucky decisions that could've gone either way which led to tries ... but I think we were quite competitive despite the scorelines."

But what Nash has enjoyed is the opportunity to play in front of a home crowd at Tamworth's Scully Park; a sentiment which he believes is shared by most of the players attending this year.

"It's good for the town," he said.

"I think there's 450 coppers in town, so that's a lot of motel rooms and food and beer to be drunk.

"No-one's arguing about why it's based in Tamworth, everyone seems quite happy."

The Police Bank Cup will continue today at Scully Park.

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