Jake Dooley and Jack Buchanan sign on in major boost for new Parkes Spacemen captain-coach Chad Porter

The Spacemen confirmed the marquee signing of former NRL player and Cowra captain-coach Jack Buchanan while brothers Takitau and Moni Mapapalangi have also joined.

The signings, on top of those of Dooley and former Papua New Guinea national representative Rex Yallon, have created excitement around the club after a number of high-profile departures.

Representative trio Jack Creith, Sam Dwyer and Jordan Pope all left the club during the off-season.

Halfback Chad Porter has stepped up to replace Creith as captain-coach but, in negative news for the club, is currently racing the clock the clock to be fit for round one after recently suffering a broken hand.

Porter stated earlier in the week he was excited to lock in former Parkes star junior Dooley.

"I got 'Dools' back," Porter confirmed.

"He's travelling from Wagga. He's moved back there but he'll help out. Fullback or in the halves or wherever needed. He's a bonus for us.

"I haven't played with Dools since we won the comp in 2013 so it will be good to get back on the park with him."

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While he offers versatility, Dooley is likely to slot into fullback for the Spacemen this season.

Porter, one of the standout players in the inaugural PMP last year, is set to partner Joey Dwyer in the halves while the new captain-coach has a number of options for hooker at this stage.

The signing of former Wests Tigers and Toronto Wolfpack player Buchanan and the exciting Takitau Mapapalangi adds to a Parkes forward pack already featuring one-time NSW Country player Will Wardle, Fiji national squad member Tikoko Noke and club stalwart Brandon Paige.

There was a clamour for Buchanan after Cowra announced earlier this month they didn't have the numbers for first grade this year.

The new-look Parkes side will also be playing a different style in 2023.

The Spacemen were one of the most intriguing sides in the west to watch last season, with Creith promoting a more ad-lib approach where players were encouraged to take risks and offloads, flick passes and short kick-offs were a common sight.

When it worked, Parkes was one of the most difficult sides to contain in the competition but it didn't always go to plan and the Spacemen's season was ended in the second week of finals.

"It will be a fair bit different to last year," Porter said of his style.

"I play a little more structured. Work your sets and that kind of thing.

"Last year we were a bit off the cuff and I feel like I want to bring a bit more structure back in and have a bit of a plan."

Given Creith made a shock retirement announcement early in the off-season, the captain-coach's role was somewhat thrust upon Porter.

It was a role he had considered and rejected in the past and the idea of a co-leadership role with Creith in 2023 had been mentioned at some point, but the halfback feels comfortable to take it on alone now.

"I thought about it a few years back but I didn't feel like I was ready for it at that stage," Porter said.

"Creithy had a change of heart and had a young fella so wanted to do the family thing and not worry about footy so I just thought I'd take it on myself.

"My brother, Jake, is helping me out and giving a hand and that makes it easy because I work away. It's good to have him there and we're on the same page and we'll work well together there."

Current Western Rams representative Wardle and Paige also provide plenty of bush footy know-how and are others the rookie captain-coach will lean on this year.

The Group 11 conference is shaping as a competitive one this year with Nyngan making a number of off-season signings while Dubbo sides CYMS and Macquarie are expected to again be premiership contenders and Wellington is also confident of improvement.

Porter wasn't making any bold claims when speaking about his hopes for the season ahead, with building into things through upcoming trials against Orange Hawks and Wellington the main focus for now.

"I'm feeling good. The boys who have been turning up have been putting in and we've been working on a fair bit of fitness," he said.

"We'll be fit and hopefully we can put it together. The main goal is semis and once you're there it's all a new ball game."

The Spacemen travel to Orange to take on Hawks in a trial game on Saturday.

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