Saturday's Western Youth League match against a severely under strength Mudgee wasn't exactly what Dubbo CYMS wanted so close to the finals series but they still put on a show for the Fishies fans in attendance.
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Saturday's match was played 11-a-side due to Mudgee being so short but CYMS, with a full bench, was a class above and ran out dominant 70-6 winners at Apex Oval.
While it keeps the Fishies' slim hopes of finishing top in the competition's northern pool alive, captain Joe Yeo admitted a sterner test would have been ideal heading into the pointy end of the season.
"Eleven on 11 probably didn't suit us," he said.
"We wanted to bounce back after last week and a pretty disappointing draw [against Macquarie] and we've still got to improve discipline.
"The effort is always there but it's just discipline. We drop ball and then give away a penalty."
The injury-hit Dragons, to their credit, never threw in the towel despite little going their way.
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The few Mudgee fans in attendance went up as one when Kain Munro went over for his side's lone try midway through the second half but the Dragons were never really in the contest.
Noah Ryan, Fletcher Haycock, and Harrison Freeman all scored doubles for the Fishies while Braye Porter finished with a personal haul of 22 points after scoring a try and booting nine conversions from 10 attempts.
CYMS barely got out of second gear in the first half and led 34-0 and while things were a little more scrappy in the second half the hosts still ran in a further six tries.
"We've been improving each week but we start well and then fade away," Yeo said of his side's performances this season.
"If we want to do well in this competition we'll have to continue on and improve next week."
Next week is a meeting with the Wellington Cowboys, who meet Macquarie in a crucial northern pool top-of-the-table battle on Sunday afternoon.
The Raiders are expected to get past Mudgee in next weekend's final round and Yeo admitted his side hasn't gievn too much though to top spot.
"I think we could end up finishing second and that would probably see us playing Orange CYMS and that would be a good game," he said.
The winners of the northern pool will meet Parkes, already assured second in the southern pool, in the quarter finals while those who finish second and third meet second and first respectively from the eastern pool.
Bathurst St Pat's is currently the unbeaten leaders in the eastern pool and shape as a huge test for whoever meets them in the final eight.
Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior journalist. I cover all that's happening in sport in Dubbo and the wider western area and have a passion for doing so. If you've got a story that needs telling, reach out.
