Bloomfield Tigers duo Haiden Porter and Chayse King may be focused on the job at hand but both will take a moment to reflect on their last ever junior rugby league game.
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Tigers face Lithgow Storm in the Group 10 under 16s grand final at Wade Park on Saturday, September 16.
It's the second week in a row the two towns will battle it out in a decider, following Orange Hawks' win against Lithgow Workies Wolves on Sunday, September 10.
With a move to the under 18s imminent, both players have experienced the full range of junior footy in the Colour City, having swapped the green and gold of Orange CYMS for Tigers blue in under 13s.
King said it was a big moment for the many team members set to move up the grades in 2024.
"Seeing juniors come to an end [is emotional]," he said.
"It's been our whole lives for the last 10 or so years, training twice a week, and playing with your mates.
"We've been playing juniors here since under 13s."
The similarities between the Tigers under 16s and Hawks under 18s are striking. In addition to both playing Lithgow in the final game of the year, they also enjoyed an unbeaten season.
Porter said they had learned a lot from them.
"We trained against them every second week and we learned a lot from them," he said.
"Chase and I were both there on the weekend to support them."
The five-eighth said matching Storm's big forward pack and making sure they respected possession would be key to getting their hands on the trophy.
"I'm feeling pretty nervous but confident in the boys as well," he said.
"They have been our toughest competition all year. It's always been pretty close between ourselves and Lithgow.
"They have some big boys through the middle. Our boys can sometimes struggle to handle them. Hopefully we can this weekend.
"We just need to hold the ball. As soon as we drop the ball a couple of times and give them a sniff the game turns. If we hold it we should be fine."
"That first 15 minutes we need to muscle up in defence and hold them out," King added.
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