It may not have been the grand finale of the four-game day at Glen Willow, but the Under 18 Dragons certainly set the tone for a strong day for the Mudgee teams in the elimination rounds.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Later in the day the premier side would romp away with the scoreline in the fourth-plays-fifth finals fixture, and a similar first half played out in the earlier Mudgee battle.
It was another fourth against fifth grudge match, with the Under 18s Bears having beaten out the Mudgee outfit for fourth on goal difference, but you could have been forgiven for thinking the Dragons came out on top in the ladder battle.
Mitch Harvey bagged the first just six minutes in, before a long ranged diving try from Billy Carberry put the Bears on the back foot.
The Young Dragons refused to let the travelling Bears find the white line throughout the first half as well, keeping them scoreless in the first forty minutes of the contest.
A strong first half was topped by a try and two goals for Lachlan Hill, and the young boys in the rev took a 16-0 lead into the half-time break.
It was a closer second half from the Bears, with a Joseph Hobby double and Dion Jones adding a try an goal, but the Dragons’ first half had set them in good stead to close out the match.
Harry Beasley and Timothy Newton both found their way onto the scoresheet for the Mudgee team and booked the Under 18s ticket to next weekend's semi-final with a solid 28-14 win in front of the cheering home crowd.
In the Qualifying Final, the all-Bathurst battle saw St Pats come out on top, and so the Under 18 Dragons will now come up against the defeated Panthers for a spot in the preliminary finals.
Last time the young Panthers came up against the boys in the red v, they came away with the win, 36 to 24.
The Mudgee boys will be looking to reverse their fortunes away from home.
Assistant coach Brendan George said before the match that momentum would be key to the finals run for the Under 18s, and that red-hot momentum will now take them up against another challenge on the weekend.
The win over the Bears also brings to memory the deep run the Under 18s made in the 2016 finals, falling just short of the premiership after a defeat in the grand final.
That finals run saw them take down the Workies and Orange CYMS, before eventually falling at Wade Park.
With this win, and now on the front foot, can the young Under 18s Dragons do one better and claim the trophy and glory in 2017?
Mudgee Dragons Under 18s (Mitch Harvey, Billy Carberry, Lachlan Hill, Harry Beasley, Timothy Newton tries; Lachlan Hill 4 goals) defeated Blayney Bears Under 18s (Joseph Hobby 2, Dion Jones tries; Dion Jones goal)