When it comes to the grind of a winter on the rugby paddock, every pundit will tell you the same thing... it's not how you start, it's how you finish.
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Zac White's Molong Magpies are looking to embrace that mentality on Saturday when they face the Geurie Goats in an Oilsplus Cup grand-final qualifier, with the winner to face Blayney Rams in the decider.
After kicking off their campaign with a 56-0 loss to the Coolah Roos, the black and whites bounced back emphatically last weekend, knocking off that very same side 25-17 in a first-round finals contest.
Considering the lopsided nature of that opening-round defeat, to bounce back with an eight-point victory just nine weeks later is ultra impressive.
But, the Pies won't settle for that... they look to reverse another loss this weekend when they face the Goats, a side that traveled to Molong and collected a 31-22 win back in round three.
According to White, 2021 has been a tale of inconsistencies, but the troops are getting healthy and fit at the right time of the season. In fact, it's been five weeks since the Magpies sustained a loss as they wrapped up the regular season like a house on fire.
"It's been a mixed season but everyone's coming good at the right time," White said.
"We'd like to think we can go up to Geurie and get the job done, but I don't think we're going up there as favourites.
"We've got a lot of young blokes on the side and they're all pretty resilient and seem to be getting fit at the right time of the year."
Even though the Magpies emerged from that round three loss on the wrong side of the scoreboard, White noticed several things about the way in which the Goats play their footy.
"They're a pretty flamboyant side," White said.
"We need to control things against them and stop them from getting the ball in open space.
"They're a good running side. The last time we played them they scored a couple of full-field tries."
It would be fair to say that no matter which side wins, Blayney will be heavy favourites in the grand final, simply due to the nature of its campaign so far.
The Rams are 8-0 with an imposing differential of plus-175. Saturday's contest starts at 2pm.
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