Darrell Morris said that as a volunteer board member he helped in “tackling” the issues of local unions, whether it be in membership or representation. He was the only board member in western Queensland. He was also proud to be a man of Aboriginal heritage having a voice on the board. 

“I want to make sure the north west gets the representation it deserves in rugby,” Morris said. 

“It will give the opportunity for particularly Mount Isa based players potentially being picked for North Queensland. 

“Sometimes I think there are players in Mount Isa that would be very useful in the North Queensland Squad which is mainly made up of Townsville and Cairns and Mackay.

“Most Mount Isa players should be considered for North Queensland and potentially for Country Queensland.” 

However, the board members were not directly selectors of players, Morris said. They instead interviewed and selected coaches and staff who looked at players’ merits. 

They also looked at concerns of the individual unions and highlighting the sport’s importance in regional communities such as Mount Isa and Cloncurry. “The overall goal for me personally is to get as many people, male and female, of all different backgrounds playing rugby in Queensland,” he said.

The key issue for rugby in the Mount Isa Rugby Union was the numbers for all teams to be able to play.

Morris said a sport such as rugby was important for the physical and mental health of young men, but that there was a high drop out rate in the sport between 18 to 23 years. He said it was important to maintain the men in this age group for the social benefits. 

“As soon as you’re 18 you’re working, you might go to uni and Tafe. So when it gets all too hard the first thing people drop is their sports. You all work all day so the last thing you kind of want to do sometimes is go to footy training, or you want your weekend to be free. 

“You’ve got to give something up and the first thing to go is something that doesn’t pay them. It’s not just rugby union, it’s all sports that happens,” Morris said.

“It’s great for our community here in Cloncurry to have a rugby union team and other sporting teams as well, but the biggest issue is the number of players, and keeping those players back every year and developing a good culture among the rugby clubs in the region.

“If you can  field the same team two weeks in a row you’re lucky, and that’s just part of developing the culture of the club.” 

He will attend board meetings four times a year.

But to save the board money he requested to know as early as possible for the cheaper flight because the board did not have a lot of money to spend.

“It’s a big space of land to look after. And a big challenge to keep the spirit alive where drought is affecting the regions,” he said.