Parkes Spacemen's Jack Buchanan named Group 11 Player of the Year

Buchanan was on hand to collect the top prize at the Group 11 presentation night on Friday at the Dubbo RSL.

A former NRL and English Super League player, Buchanan made the move to Parkes this season after former club Cowra failed to have the numbers to feature in the Peter McDonald Premiership.

He slotted into the Spaceman lineup seamlessly and has been a huge presence up front, playing big minutes and helping his side reach Sunday's preliminary final against Dubbo CYMS.

"I was very honoured to receive it but it was a shock," the prop said.

"Without even looking at the rest of the competition, there's just some guys in our own team like Will Wardle and Chaddy Porter who have had outstanding seasons as well.

"So I was a bit blown away and when you look across the whole (Group 11) comp, every team is pretty stacked and it's been a solid comp all year."

Buchanan finished one point ahead of five-time winner and Wellington captain-coach Justin Toomey-White in the race for the player of the year prize.

Having previously represented Cowra and Orange CYMS in Group 10, this season was Buchanan's first in Group 11 and he's quickly took to being part of the Parkes club.

While he still lives in Cowra and travels across, the Buchanan family felt at home in the red, white and blue almost immediately.

"To be honest, when we decided Cowra would fold and I had to decide what to do, I felt from the first few phone calls with Pauly Clyburn and Tony (Dwyer) I had a feeling they (Parkes) were a pretty family-orientated club and they just love what they do and now, looking back at the year, I totally agree with that," Buchanan said.

"They're such a good club from the top all the way down. That first training session they were all coming over and introducing themselves, the league tag side too, and they get around each other after a game and get back to the Coachman (Hotel Motel) and have a beer and it's all one big family.

"I've really enjoyed it and it's been one to remember so hopefully we can go on and make it a bit more memorable."

The front-row partnership of Buchanan and Takitau Mapapalangi has been key to Parkes' success this season, with the former Wests Tigers man playing the big minutes and getting through a mountain of work while the latter is a little more eye-catching as an athletic forward who has bulldozed his way through opposition defences while also showcasing a neat pair of hands.

"My role throughout my whole career hasn't always been the flashy kind of stuff like my front row partner now," Buchanan said.

"He's just an absolute weapon and an athlete of a human. He does stuff that front rowers shouldn't be doing.

"That's his attributes and that's what he brings to the team whereas my attributes are a little bit different and I sort of always prided myself on a lot of work.

"I have taken it on myself to try and be that guy and lead the guys forward, whether it's for 50 minutes, 60 minutes or the 80 minutes.

"And obviously also trying to teach and bring on the younger guys as well and try and pass on the knowledge I have so they can better themselves as well."

Buchanan's win on Friday night stopped Toomey-White from winning three straight player of the year prizes and a record-breaking sixth nod overall.

The best and fairest award is voted on by the referees each week and Buchanan finished with 20 points while Toomey-White was one behind.

Parkes and Wellington featured well in the points as Wardle (13 points) and Blake Ferguson (10) were third and fourth respectively while Nyngan youngster Aidan Bermingham (nine) rounded out the top five.

Ryan Goodell of Parkes and Nyngan's Fletcher Hunt were joint-winners of the under 18s best and fairest award while Forbes star India Draper collected the top prize for league tag and Matt Sheather of Nyngan was named the best in reserve grade.

Parkes will take on Dubbo CYMS in a PMP preliminary final from 2.15pm at Apex Oval on Sunday, with the winner to meet either Mudgee or Orange Hawks in the grand final.

Reading this on mobile web? Download our news app. It's faster, easier to read and we'll send you alerts for breaking news as it happens. Download in the Apple Store or Google Play.