While most of the Central West Rugby Union community has their focus firmly set on grand finals this time of year, Dubbo Kangaroos star Mark Baldwin currently has his yes set on a bigger prize.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After nearly a year and a half straight of injuries and setbacks, it might not have been the the safest bet that he would be pulling on a Country Cockatoos jersey at the end of the year.
Baldwin spent most of the Roos' 2018 season and a stretch of their 2019 campaign as an assistant coach on the sidelines after suffering a ruptured ACL in the 2018 NSW Country Rugby Union Championship.
But, the Caldwell Cup winning Blue Bulls captain is hard to deny, and he's received a call-up to the Country Cockatoos outfit that will head to Adelaide later in the year, lining up alongside five more of the Central West's best.
"The knee's going really well, I obviously ruptured my ACL in the country championships last year and had to take the year off, but I'm not too worried about it, at the end of the day, it's footy, you got to play your hardest and what happens, happens," Baldwin said.
It's good to see a fair few of our Central West boys getting picked for this team, they're all deserving.
- Mark Baldwin
The Central West portion of the Country team looks a bit like a who's who of Blue Bulls reps, with Harden's Shahid Khalfan, Geurie's Filisione Pauta, the Orange Emu's Lachlan Harris and Forbes duo Mahe Fangupo and Charlie French.
"We all played together for the Central West and we took out the Country Champs, so obviously we showed we're capable there."
"It's good to see a fair few of our Central West boys getting picked for this team, they're all deserving."
The only notable exception is Dubbo Roo's skipper Shaun McHugh, who was expected to earn a call-up after turning in a strong performance during the Blue Bulls undefeated campaign.
"It's absolutely a disappointment he's not there with us, he's one of my good mates, but you just got to trust the coaches and their selections," Baldwin said of his teammate's absence.
This will be Baldwin's first time donning a Cockatoos jersey, but the former Randwick captain has previously represented as a NSW Country Eagle during his tenure in Sydney.
"When you play footy at the higher level, it just becomes more fun, everyone's invested like you are, everyone is just as committed as you are and you get a lot more out of it as a result."
"I don't know if there's nerves, it's a fair way out, just excitement right now and feeling really happy to be picked, that might eventuate when we get a bit closer to the date."
The 2019 Cockatoos side have only undertaken one training session so far in Sydney during the regular season and no one's been talking about roles yet, but Baldwin's confident the selectors won't be looking for anything other than his usual best.
"We haven't gone into depth yet, but definitely, that's my spot at flanker, I can't imagine them putting me anywhere else, I'm not going to do any good for them at half-back."