A hat-trick from captain Jack Beasley has helped Mudgee Dragons land the Group 10 minor premiership following a 40-16 win against Orange Hawks.
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Beasley scored in the first-half and then crossed the line twice in the space of five minutes in the second as Dragons re-asserted their dominance in the division.
By half-time however it seemed like Hawks were set to extend their Peter McDonald Premiership winning streak to five matches, taking a 16-6 lead into the sheds.
Beasley said the Mudgee forward pack stepped up after the interval, laying the platform for the home side to run in six unanswered tries at Glen Willow.
"It's always nice to get a bit of meat," he said.
"In that second half we really started rolling through the guts, our forwards were finding their grunt and it's always easy to play off the back of that."
"We were stoked because they are a really well coached side. The wrestle in the middle was really good and they controlled us in the first half. They get three men in every tackle.
"We were stuffed the first half but once we started rolling in the second we went really well.
"You have to ice it when you can."
Mudgee now play the two Bathurst clubs to end their regular season and are equal on points with Dubbo CYMS with the highest ranked club earning grand final hosting rights.
The hooker said it was a timely win for Dragons as they look ahead to finals.
"We needed that big win," he said.
"We want to start stringing together some good wins. Clay [Priest] has been talking about really getting the polish right in our game and not letting other teams get a sniff.
"Group 11, anyone can beat anyone in that comp. Wellington dropped CYMS the other week and Forbes are coming last but they are still strong."
Mudgee celebrated 50 years since their 1973 premiership and wore special jerseys to mark the occasion.
Beasley said the jersey presentation from the old boys on the Friday night before the match was special.
"We were pretty stoked to win the minor premiership for Group 10 on old boys day," he said.
"There was a huge turnout and they all got around us which was really good to see.
"It was cool. It was awesome that they all keep in contact and are still as passionate about it now. They love their footy."
MUDGEE DRAGONS 40 (Jack Beasley 3, Jack Littlejohn 2, Lleyton LothianJayden Brown tries, Clay Priest 5, James Goonrey goals) defeated ORANGE HAWKS 16 (Harry Wald, Ryan Manning, Ben French tries, Ryan manning 2 goals)
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