After this year’s titles in Warren ended the most recent nine-year cycle of hosts, it’s been confirmed the Country Championships will be held at Tamworth in 2019, 2020 and 2021 and will also revert back to the June long weekend.

The women’s championship is expected to revert back to a 15-a-side tournament as well just two years after it changed to sevens. The sevens championship is expected to be held separately, and will remain a feeder program for the University of New England’s AON Uni 7s pathway.

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It’s not the first time Blue Bulls head coach Dean Oxley, a member of the 1996 Caldwell Cup-winning side, has had to adapt to country week changing, and it probably won’t be the last either.

But it doesn’t change much in terms of what he wants from his side in 2019, after the Blue Bulls fell one win short of a top tier triumph at Warren.

“The Central West is a proud zone, we are up against the might of Newcastle and Illawarra and we’ve got excuses as to why they have it easier than us, but in the end we have to step up,” Oxley fired.

“That’s what has to happen and hopefully we can continue to do that.”

The Blue Bulls, and Central West’s women’s side too, will have a massive boost leading into this year’s campaign, with the planned tour of New Zealand gaining momentum.

This year’s group was on hand at last weekend’s Classic Wallabies visit fundraising while trials were held for the women’s outfit on the same day, the tour is set for March and will include a camp with the Canterbury Crusaders staff.

Reportedly, the side’s first game has been locked in by Central West CEO Matt Tink as well, against the University of Christchurch.

“From the moment [Tink] started he has been engaged in all facets of rugby in the Central West and that’s why it’s exciting to be a part of it,” Oxley said.

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“The added interest and exposure the game got this year was fantastic.”

Naturally winning silverware is the foremost goal for all of Central West’s sides, but it’s about more than that too because Oxley wants the trend of Blue Bulls pushing further to continue in 2019.

“[Country week] gives [players] a viable path to (NSW) Country and even if that doesn’t lead to NSW like it did years and years ago when James Grant was playing, it does lead to exposure that allows players to play at that higher level,” he said.

“They can then maybe look at where they want to go from there. So I think it’s really important, even just as a reward for good club footballers who then get a chance to get together at those carnivals.”

After finishing second in this year’s Caldwell Cup, being beaten by Illawarra in the final, Central West is set to face Richardson Shield champions Central Coast in this year’s country week opener.

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Central West’s colts were also runners-up in 2018, beaten by a powerful Newcastle-Hunter side in the Rowlands Cup final, but it remains to be seen how many sides will contest the colts division in 2019.

The Blue Bulls women finished this year’s 15-a-side championship, played at Campbelltown, in third, pushing eventual champions Illawarra and runners-up Hunter as well. Illawarra ended Hunter’s 17-year title reign.