Saturday couldn't have gone much better for Matt Sandell.
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Not only did the prop get to start for the Country Eagles and score a try in the National Rugby Championship win at Apex Oval, he also got to see his junior club in action at finals time.
Saturday's marquee match was played in between the Central West Junior Rugby Union preliminary finals, in which Sandell's junior club the Mudgee Wombats featured in the under 15s and the under 17s.
"It's bloody awesome," Sydney uni prop Sandell said after the 38-33 win over Sydney.
"I don't get to do it (travel back west) very often so I was really excited to play Country this year and come to this game and when I heard Mudgee were playing in the 17s it was pretty good."
Sandell is one of a number of younger players in the Eagles squad and is the kind of players coach Rob Taylor wants to see develop across the competition.
Orange junior Jack Grant is another and he's been learning already while working as the understudy to Waratahs scrumhalf Jake Gordon.
"Jakey gave me plenty of time (on the field) and that was good," Grant said.
"It's awesome to learn from people like him and I'll be learning heaps doing this."
Sandell also had plenty of praise for the older heads in the squad, pointing to Dubbo junior Tom Robertson as someone who's having a real impact despite currently being sidelined through injury.
The Eagles take on Melbourne Rising in round two.
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