It's hard not to smile when you realise what Kate Trudgett and Abbie Gorman are doing.
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The mother-daughter combination is enjoying an extremely special season of Emus rugby this winter as they are playing side-by-side in the Westfund Ferguson Cup, defying an age gap of 16 years.
Back in 2004 when Trudgett was playing in her first season at the club, she was forced to miss the side's grand-final victory due to pregnancy and in seasons after that, was rushing off the field to feed Gorman during half-time... pretty bizarre.
As Gorman got older and Trudgett's love for the game remained, a vision of the two playing together slowly became more realistic, and at the start of 2021, that dream became a reality.
And while Gorman is fairly casual about playing on the same field as her Mum, Trudgett's found a new level of motivation, especially in the ruck.
"I'll never clear out better than when she's [Abbie] playing," she said.
I'll never clear out better than when Abbie's playing
- Kate Trudgett
"I did my ACL three years ago and I wasn't going to come back but when she was old enough to play, I said I've got to come back."
"Emus have become her family as much as mine. She's been on the sideline for her whole life and the other girls on the bench have taken turns to baby sit her or nurse her."
There's always going to be a competitive dynamic between two family members on the same team, and when the duo was asked who the better player is, Gorman sarcastically asked this question.
"How many tries have you scored, Mum?"
"She's played league for three years so she's a better ball runner and probably a better tackler," Trudgett admitted.
While they won't play on the same team beyond 2021, the girls plan to move to Vipers rugby league together where Gorman will play in the under-16s, while Trudgett will play in the open's side.
As much as Trudgett wouldn't like to admit it, she's no spring chicken anymore, but age won't stop her from trucking through a couple more seasons, because she's got another daughter to take the field with.
"I've done it for Abbie so I've got to do it for Sophie," she said.
"She can play in the women's in two years so I've got another two seasons after this one. I'll play up until she can play... if I can get through injury free."
Emus currently sit in third position on the table and are chasing a red hot Bathurst Bulldogs outfit.
The reigning premiers have put together a sensational campaign so far, and are clearly the team to beat.
"We're training a lot better now," she said.
"We've started working with the men's team and that's been helping us."
"I'm not sure how close we can get to them, but I think we can do OK."
There's a league-wide bye this Saturday before sides return to action on July 24. Emus will host Dubbo, a side that's been very formidable in the women's competition in recent seasons.
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