It started with a 100-point win over Cowra Blues three weeks ago before the miraculous, final-minute come-from-behind victory over Dubbo Demons a fortnight back.

But it was last weekend’s huge, emotional win over Bathurst Giants to claim the first Katrina Hobby Memorial Shield which has made the Tigerettes not just as a lock for finals, but a smokey to challenge teams right until the pointy end. 

The national competition has shown the value of a team peaking at the right time of the year – as shown with the Western Bulldogs in 2016 and to a lesser extent Richmond last year. 

Could the Tigerettes emulate the AFL premiers and leapfrog the teams above them? 

Midfielder and stand-in-skipper Jacqui Harris said her Tigerettes are starting to believe they can make real inroads into finals football, saying the side is keeping a close on eye on other results to find who they’ll play in week one of finals now the side is all but locked into fourth. 

“We’ve definitely been looking at the ladder, thinking about where we’re going and who we’re going to [be pitted against] but the focus is on the next two games,” Harris said.

“We’ve got Parkes this week and looking at the last Parkes versus Giants game, the Giants only just got over the line so it could still be a really tough game.” 

Harris emulated what several others have said about the side in saying the Tigerettes has finally “clicked”.

“The defence is a lot tighter and is better at staying on players, the midfield has got quicker in the hands and our kicking game has really picked up, we’re hitting targets,” she said.

“We’re starting to play four quarters, which is really important especially in the last few games being really, really close.” 

Harris stepped into the captaincy at the last minute ahead of the Dubbo game when skipper Renee Cullis went into hospital and relished leading the team as it ran over the Demons in the final term.

It’s not her first rodeo in taking on the captaincy, and Dael Bingham took the reigns last week, but said she was “honoured” to be asked by Cullis to take the gig for the rest of the year. 

As a result Harris will lead the side out again against Parkes at Waratahs Sportsground’s newly-minted Tiger Park on Saturday afternoon.

First bounce in the round 14 clash – the penultimate game of the season – is at 12.45pm. 

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