 Arthurson, by then regarded as one of the best young halfbacks in the league, then played another full season at Manly in 1952, before accepting the role of player-coach with NSW Country Group 11 team Parkes' for 1953.His reason for leaving Manly and going to Parkes was that with players such as Australian and NSW halfback Keith Holman generally being the first picked for representative teams (City Firsts, NSW and Australia), Arthurson felt he had a better chance at NSW and Australian selection playing for Country Firsts.Just three weeks into his stint at Parkes in a match between Northern and Southern NSW Zones in April 1953, Ken was badly injured.