Both born and raised in Dubbo, Sykes had a passion for all sports growing up, particularly athletics and tennis, where she played alongside her twin sister and future Canberra United captain Nicole.

It was only when she was 12 that she began focusing on soccer. Both her and her sister linked up with Canberra United at just 16 years of age but remained living at home with their family, travelling to compete in the inaugural season of the W-League while completing their HSC at Dubbo Christian School.

For Maher, her mother was her first coach when playing junior soccer locally but at just seven years of age her family packed up and moved to Canberra.

“Since then I’ve just always played,” Maher, now 17, tells the Daily Liberal.

“When I got to Canberra I was already a few years into my career.”

Sykes, now 25, also remembers her time at Dubbo all too well.

“When I was young Mum and Dad got us into any sport, the main ones were tennis and Little As,” she said. “From there our coach's husband asked us to play soccer and that's how we transitioned.

“I went from a little girl running around Ballimore on a Friday night and running around the farm with Nic to getting a call-up to the Matildas just a couple of years ago.”

The Sykes sisters were two real sporting pioneers from Dubbo. After playing locally for Sass SC, Amaroo Rangers, the Dubbo Devils and Western NSW Panthers FC, the pair left to go play in a brand new league and it wasn’t long before the pair became key figures in the Canberra United side.

Now, Sykes remains as integral to her side’s hopes as any player in the league while her sister, the now-married Nicole Begg, has taken time away from the game with the question of if she will ever return still unanswered.

But Sykes is not the lone country girl in the squad. In fact, she is not even the lone Dubbo junior with young gun Maher having established herself as a key player, just two years after all the hype of signing on as United’s youngest ever player.

“It’s a small but connecting feature we all had,” Maher said, before laughing when admitting she doesn’t remember a huge amount of her childhood out west.

“But it was more my parents talking with Ash and Nicole and reminiscing about Dubbo.

“It’s something we’re all proud of, we come from a country town.”

Sykes, a Western Panthers star junior, echoed that sentiment when speaking about playing in country areas.

“It's great and I think we all feel a bit of a connection, we've all done that travelling and the hard yards and it's great to see,” she said.

“I saw the talent coming through and if I hadn't made it than it would have been someone else from my generation and it's been great to see so many players be successful. Hopefully more can do it and continue to make it and play at the highest level.”

Maher and Sykes do not only have a connection off the field, they have developed a strong one on the pitch as well.

The duo were key in Canberra United’s march to the minor premiership and will be vital again on Sunday in the first round of finals.

United has banged in 33 goals this season, more than any other side, while Sykes’ 12 goals of her own saw her finish the regular season with the much sought-after Golden Boot award.

“It's been awesome,” Sykes said of the season.

“We set out with the target of making the top four and then anything can happen in semis. We've seen how close the league is this season with teams at the bottom beating teams at the top.

“It's been great to see that (competitiveness) develop and we've been really good and won the minor premiership and everyone is really pumped and I was excited to get the golden boot.

“It's been really enjoyable and I think that's the biggest thing for me. I have to love what I'm doing and I guess you could say the same for every player.

“But we recruited a really attacking team and we scored 33 goals this season, which I think is the most and it's been great to be a part of that. And that attacking style of play benefits me up front.”​

Canberra United, when in full flight, is not just one of the most exciting teams in the W-League, but arguably one of the best in any competition across the country.

The Dubbo juniors are key to that, with few local sporting exports so key to their side’s hopes and so outstanding on a national level. The pacy and powerful Sykes has been scoring for fun while Maher sits a little deeper, pulling the strings from midfield.

“For someone like me, I like to get on the ball and play passes and support,” she said. “Not really run with it but I know with girls like Ash and Michelle (Heyman) they’ll run on to through balls and passes and use their flawless touch, that helps.”

Sykes and fellow striker Heyman are two of Maher’s favourites to line up alongside, while they have also made the teen’s transition into the side all too easy.

Sykes said Maher has “grown into her role” perfectly, and the statistics back that up, the 17-year-old produced a regular season-best seven assists in 2017.

“It was such a shock to sign as Canberra’ youngest player but now I’ve got the opportunity to be part of such a successful side and also getting into Australian representative sides and I take a lot of pride in it and it just builds so much confidence,” Maher said, having represented Australia in the under-15s and 17s already.

Wearing the green and gold is something both players are familiar with.

As Maher stated, she has been a regular in Australian youth sides, even captaining the under-19s in recent times.

Her stunning progress has even seen Maher mentioned as a senior Matildas player, with the prestigious Algarve Cup looming in March.

“I debuted in the Australian 17s in 2014,” she said.

“We’ve played three tournaments since then and the most recent was an under-19s, I had two tournaments with them and one as captain of the team which was a massive honour.

“We’ve got a big World Cup qualifier at the end of this year so the main priority is to qualify for that because we haven’t done that in I think something like 12 years.

“I’m also pushing to make the senior team now there is a bit of a regeneration there and I’m hoping to put my name in.”

Sykes is in a completely different boat to Maher, not just in terms of the stage of her career but also her circumstances when it comes to the international game.

Sykes played Australian under-20s numerous times as a youngster, with her youth career capped off with a spot in the national side at the 2009 Under-20 Asian Championships.

The former Dubbo Devil earned her first senior cap in 2008, registering an assist on debut against Vietnam before scoring in her second and third matches.

Sykes went on to play in the 2014 Asian Cup, where the Matildas finished as runners-up, while she scored in two matches at the 2015 Cyprus Cup.

But the ultimate honour of her career, and any player’s career, came in 2015 when the Dubbo Christian School product played at a World Cup.

She made her World Cup debut in the opening match of the tournament, coming off the bench to play against the United States.

But later in the 2015/16 season Sykes opted to walk away from the national side, citing personal reasons and the need to reevaluate what she wanted from the game.

That still stands today, but with the Matildas and the women’s game in general coming on in leaps and bounds its not as easy to sit at home and watch.

“It's always in the back of my mind,” Sykes said of the Matildas.

“It was a hard decision because everyone when they are growing up and starting their career that is the ultimate goal, it just wasn't right for me at that time.

“But it's been really exciting to watch the Matildas and its an exciting time for the national team.”

Sykes and Maher are just two people currently excited about the Matildas’ standing on the Australian sporting landscape.

The World Cup qualification was a huge boost for the side, getting into the lounge room of most houses in Australia and then a run to the quarter-finals at the 2016 Rio Olympics and a thrilling match against hosts Brazil saw the side gain a huge amount of attention.

Maher, as someone who is almost bound to enter the international game when it is as popular as ever, is excited about the game’s growth but is still adamant more is needed to be done.

“I’m at a really interesting stage,” she said.

“In terms of my age I’m young but I’ve played for a couple of years and there’s progress.

“It’s not ideal but people are noticing it (the growth) and noticing that it has to change and that is being done.

“Five years ago you would barely know a Matildas player but now, to see the way female athletes are perceived and to see they are role models is great.

“There’s not the income or the professionalism but they are marketable options and the women are role models for boys and girls.”

The question of Sykes’ possible return to the Matildas is similar to the questions hanging over her sister and any kind of return to the game.

Begg captained United to the 2014 W-League title, where Sykes scored a crucial goal in the decider, while both were also part of the 2012 grand final winning side.

The pair also spent time together on international duty. All that meant the pair had virtually been side-by-side from their first matches together in the juniors at Dubbo right through to the 2015/16 season at Canberra United.

But in the build-up to this season, Begg announced she was walking away and having a sabbatical.

“It was a bit funny turning up for pre-season and Nic not being there,” Sykes confessed.

“And the first away trip not having her there. We usually shared a room and hung out together so it's been an adjustment but at the same time she's in Thailand right now and is having a really nice holiday and I think what she's doing is right for her at the moment.”

While keen to discuss growing up in Dubbo, family, national matches and favourite moments, there is no doubt the biggest focus for Sykes and Maher right now is this weekend’s semi-final with defending premiers Melbourne City.

The proposition is simple for Canberra United – win or the season is over.

“At times we've played some really good football which has been hard to stop for other teams but we've also played a couple of games which have been horrible so we'll just have to work hard,” Sykes said.

“The semi-finals are strange, it doesn't matter how you're going everyone lifts this time of year and Melbourne City are a really strong team, they obviously went undefeated last season.”

The semi-final is played at 2pm at Canberra, with the match televised on both Fox Sports and ABC.