FINGAL Bay athlete Will Clark is a proud and dedicated rugby warrior with a strong connection to the Nelson Bay Gropers.
After experiencing a heart-breaking grand final loss to reigning premiers Scone Brumbies in this year’s Hunter Suburban Presidents Cup first grade men’s series, the versatile Colt has made a pact with teammates to bring the trophy back to Port Stephens in 2027.
Twenty-one-year-old Clark enjoyed a bumper season for the Gropers at fly half and played a key role in the club’s quest for premiership honours.
After dashing performances at fullback, centre and on the wing, Nelson Bay coach Michael Squires experimented with his attacking weapon in the number 10 jumper and reaped the dividends.
Clark struck up a slick combination with half back Kade Redmond and relished the opportunity to step into the five eighth role during the Gropers’ grand final charge.
His astute tactical kicking, silky ball skills and sharp running inspired the young Nelson Bay side to great heights as they came within an ace of capturing the coveted President’s Cup title.
A product of the Gropers’ junior rugby system, Will has always harboured an ambition to win a first grade rugby premiership with his beloved Nelson Bay club.
“That personal goal still burns,” Clark told News Of The Area.
“Especially after this year’s grand final loss. To achieve it with my great mates would be something special.”
With that in mind, the talented playmaker described the Gropers’ 2026 campaign as “unfinished business”.
He has ripped into his off-season training program with plenty of zest and aims to enter the 2027 Hunter Suburban season in supreme fitness.
Clark was a promising fullback with Nelson Bay junior teams from the age of nine and played for 10 years before making his top-grade debut as a 17-year-old schoolboy.
Officials blooded Will in the first-grade senior men’s ranks during his final year at Hunter Valley Grammar School and he impressed with a handful of appearances as an elusive winger.
A highlight for the rookie was defeating Maitland Blacks to claim the inaugural Dempsey-Gascoigne Cup.
Clark spent the 2023 and 2024 seasons with the Hunter Wildfires Under-20 Colts teams, where he shone as a centre and lock forward before returning to Nelson Bay last year.
He enjoys playing fly half as he’s “closer to the action” and believes the current first-grade Gropers lineup has a lot of belief moving forward.
Will is in the fourth year of a mechanical engineering degree at Newcastle University and says playing top-level rugby provides a “good balance”.
He was an emerging cricket all-rounder with Wests in the Newcastle District Cricket competition before pouring all his energy into rugby.
“I want to win a first-grade premiership with my Nelson Bay mates and believe we can,” he declared.
“Flanker Ollie Edwards and I have played together since under-8s, and to share a first-grade grand final victory would be an incredible experience.”
By Chris KARAS
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