Jai Merritt provides an attacking spark as well as anyone in Group 11, but the Macquarie Raiders under 18s captain feels it was his side’s men up front who can lead the way to premiership glory.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Merritt has been one of the stars of the Group 11 finals series, leading the Raiders to a shock comeback win over Dubbo CYMS in the qualifying semi-final before digging his side out of trouble in last weekend’s preliminary final over the Fishies.
And while Sunday’s grand final against the Forbes Magpies guarantees entertainment, both sides are loaded with representative stars and explosive attacking players, the battle up front is what Merritt is focused on.
“I’m really keen. All the boys are ready to get in,” he said.
“(Forbes has) A lot of energy and is hard in the middle and the only ones, I think, who can match our forward pack.”
The battle up front is set features some of the competitions best players.
Luke Gale of Macquarie is a NSW Country representative while Blaine Gordon has also been a leader for the Raiders this season.
They will take on the likes of Hayden Raumati and Warren Baxter who set the tone for the side’s creative players.
“They’re hard and well structured and we can’t let Jaiden Burke get out again because he’s dangerous when he goes and Farren Lamb is dangerous too,” Merritt added.
Burke was the one who almost single-handedly led the Magpies to a grand final berth.
He tore the Raiders to shreds in the major semi-final, helping the Magpies come from a 12-point deficit midway through the second half to steal a 24-18 victory.
That loss was deflating one, but rather than dwell on it Merritt said his side learnt from the defeat.
“We haven’t been playing the full 60 (minutes),” he said.
“We’d play a good 30 then drop off for a few minutes then go again for a bit but in those few minutes we’re down teams like Forbes or CYMS put a lot of points on us.
“We can’t drop off this weekend otherwise they’ll dominate us again.”
There was a club atmosphere around Raiders training on Wednesday night, with many players from other grades supporting the only Macquarie side to feature on grand final day. There was also a club barbecue after the session, and Merritt said that unity can help his side.
It hasn’t been an easy season for the Raiders, with the passing of favourite son and first grade back rower Perry Meredith prior to round one.
That loss rocked the entire rugby league community, but particularly those who wear sky blue.
“Everyone does a job and we’ve all been getting in at training, working hard and getting results,” Merritt said, before speaking about what a title would mean.
“It would mean a lot. It’s what everyone plays for and it would mean a lot to me and the boys and (coach) Hale Gordon as well.
“It would also mean a lot because of Perry.”
We can’t drop off this weekend otherwise they’ll dominate us again.
- Jai Merritt