It's a good time to be a women's rugby league player at Orange.
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Ten years ago, the options for girls to play full-contact footy were limited but as of the summer of 2020, there's a stack of pathways and opportunities for the region's finest athletes to showcase their talents.
The Orange Vipers didn't lose a single game on grand final day at Pride Park on November 22 as the 14s, 18s and opens all took out their respective Western Women's Rugby League competitions.
And what made the experience extra special for a select few open's players is that they were able to watch their daughters succeed as well.
Cass Hopping, Annalies Wilson, Tanya Sharpe and Rikki Sutherland were proud beyond words in the wake of their 20-4 victory over Wiradjuri Goannas, and not just because they capped off an undefeated season in style, but because they were able to watch their kids win grand finals as well.
Issy Hopping, Elli Wilson, Justice Sharpe and Tyshani Ah-See all lifted trophies throughout the day and being able to sit back and watch that unfold was breathtaking for the mums.
"It's good to be able to win yourself but it's so good to see your kids win as well," Annalies Wilson said.
"And that's why we do it... we put in the effort for the younger generation so they'll be able to have a really good crack at rugby league as well."
And it's not as if the women's rugby league competitions in the Central West are rudimentary, they are fully established, high-level playing grounds - something that was clear on finale day.
The way in which women have announced themselves as physical forces to be reckoned with is undeniable as the hits they put on each other rival - or even trump - the ones in the men's competitions.
"We've never had the opportunity to do it before so we're just putting everything on the line," Wilson said.
"We're building pathways for the younger girls," Tanya Sharpe added.
"We all psych ourselves up in the sheds and it's just all positive vibes."
The women's rugby league talent pool is still largely untapped in the Central West and Cass Hopping thinks girls have an incredible eye for the game.
"We have some awesome talent around and some of these girls can really read a game," she said.
"I was watching the under 14s play and that's probably my favourite age group... they hit damn hard."
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