Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
NSW Country Eagles general manager James Grant admits his franchise was not expected to figure as prominently as they have in the new National Rugby Championship (NRC) competition.
But he's glad they have.
The Eagles' 40-34 win over Perth Spirit at Dubbo on Saturday helped the side to qualify for the finals in second place, and earned them a home semi-final against Brisbane this Saturday night.
To say the Eagles have overachieved is not a fallacy but Grant believes the heart shown by the entire squad is testament to what bush rugby is all about.
"For our credibility it's been really important that we've done as well as we have because if you looked at our squad on paper before the competition started you wouldn't say we were the second-best team in the competition," Grant said.
"But everyone in our squad, from the coaching staff down to the playing group, have really bought in to what we were trying to achieve by having a Country side involved.
"We pump up the bush spirit to these boys and they have showed that all season. We've brought games to the country areas, and we've been happy with all our country visits.
"The boys get a chance to see the areas they are representing and hopefully we can do it bigger and better next season.
"We identified places like Dubbo and Orange as venues where the councils and the local communities are strong rugby supporters and it's been great to be able to bring games to those places."
Eagles coach Darren Coleman echoed Grant's sentiments, saying he had been pleasantly surprised by what the franchise had achieved on and off the field.
"It was a big risk by our backers to have a Country franchise but they've been rewarded," he said.
"When we set this up in about April we started from scratch we had no backing from a Super franchise, no training facility and our investors were hoping to be competitive and not finish last.
"To finish second at the end of the regular season has exceeded my expectations but now that we're in the finals we're not content to just make up the numbers.
"We're one game from making a grand final and two from winning the whole thing so we'll be out there doing all we can to make it a bit of a rags-to-riches story."