It has been a long wait for revenge for Willie Heta and the Orange Hawks, who were narrowly beaten in last year's Bathurst Knockout.
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The Hawks went down 13-12 to Orange CYMS and have been drawn alongside Blayney and St Pat's for the 2021 competition.
"I think it's a pretty decent run for us," coach Willie Heta said.
"It's a knockout comp so you got to make sure you win one game at a time. But I think Pats are shaping up pretty good, so our first game will be a good hit-out.
"I'm feeling pretty confident about the squad we get to take up there and it's been a long time coming after a year off and the boys have been putting in the hard yards so we'll be expecting a pretty decent performance from our squad."
Heta says the cancelled 2020 season may have even done the side some good.
"Most of them had the year off because of COVID but they've come back with a better attitude," he said.
"The body is feeling a bit fresher so they can feel like they can get out there and knock it around. I'm pretty interested to see how we'll go after having that year off."
While they would no doubt love to string off three wins and be crowned knockout champions, the weekend is about much more than results for Heta.
"Just for individuals to start changing some of the habits they have in their game," Heta said on what he would like to see.
"That's something I've pushed hard at training for is for them to turn up and try hard and better themselves and not continue to try and be the same player they've been the past few seasons.
"Just trying to get the best out of them and get them out of their comfort zone and trying things. Nothing off the cuff and silly, just more positive stuff that they can bring to the table to bring better results."
The Hawks won't be trying anything too outlandish either.
"I think we'll have a majority of the first graders there, but also a few of the fringe ones," Heta said.
"I approach each week pretty much the same as if we're going into an in-season game.
"Our preparation will be around structured stuff. Defence wins games so working on a bit of wrestling and getting into those fundamentals after a year off, developing good habits and positivity.
"Things are going to go wrong and it's about how we react to errors and all that type of stuff when it happens."
READ MORE: CYMS look to defend Bathurst Knockout title
When asked if there had been any players who have shone during pre-season, one name came to mind
"Ethan McKellar," the Hawks coach said.
"He's trained the house down and moved out of the front row to the back row.
"He's been one of the fittest in the club. He's taking a bit of time off the rep stuff, which I think will be good for his body alone."
A Hawks reserve grade side will also travel to Bathurst to take part in the reserve knockout. Their first game will be against St Pats on Friday evening at 5.30pm. If they get up, they will take on the winner of the Portland-CYMS game in a semi-final with the final to be played on Saturday afternoon.
The first grade team that will line up on Saturday is: 1 Ryan Manning, 2 Jordan Baker, 3 Duncan Young, 4 Marcel Ikinofo, 5 Frazer Ryder, 6 Willie Heta, 7 Toby Westcott, 8 Sam Coyte, 9 Jake Blimka, 10 Nathan Potts, 11 Ethan McKellar, 12 Talon Hodge, 13 Rakai Tuheke, 14 Glen Maxwell, 15 Kyle Byrnes, 16 Marlin Pollock, 17 Jack Middleton
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