Famously uttered by Dennis Denuto all those years ago, albeit with very different connotations, Canberra's Toby Westcott and Darby Medlyn said there's one factor that could drive their Raiders to success in this weekend's Jersey Flegg Cup grand final - it's the vibe of the thing.
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The lead-up to Raiders' NRL preliminary final against South Sydney on Friday night whipped the nation's capital into a frenzy, but there's a serious buzz surrounding the Western products' under-20 decider against the Rabbitohs on Sunday too.
"It's such an unreal feeling," Westcott, an Orange CYMS product, said.
We do have a lot to improve on but the attitude of our side this year [has been] phenomenal.
- Canberra halfback Toby Westcott
"There's a pretty good buzz around thew club, everyone's really getting around each other," Medlyn, a Parkes Spacemen junior, added.
In what promises to be an epic fourth-versus-fifth decider showdown, Westcott will direct traffic for the Raiders from halfback while Medlyn lines up at lock.
Bathurst Panthers junior Luke Bain will bookend the Rabbitohs' pack, with CYMS junior Moung Dut named on an extended bench too, giving the decider a distinct Western feel.
The two sides only met once this season with the Rabbitohs running out 28-12 winners, and both sides have found serious form in the finals, both knocking off minor premiers Cronulla on their way to the big dance.
For the Raiders that win helped them avenge last year's preliminary final loss to the Sharks, Medlyn ran from the bench in that 26-22 defeat and said the side are better for it.
"It's unreal knowing we're in the grand final because we were pretty close last year," he said.
"We had a good side but we're really getting around each other, there's a really good culture and a lot of belief."
Westcott backed that up and said he's hopeful the Raiders' play-for-each-other culture will come into play on Sunday, the way it did in helping the side lift to secure a top four finish after a mixed start to 2019.
"We're all just really digging in for each other," Westcott said.
"We do have a lot to improve on but the attitude of our side this year [has been] phenomenal."
While they're no strangers to big games, both Westcott and Medlyn agreed Sunday's decider will be the biggest stage they've played on.
The Jersey Flegg Cup grand final kicks off at 11.45am at Bankwest Stadium,
- CANBERRA: 1 Harley Smith-Shields, 2 Semi Valemei, 3 Gideon Afemui, 4 Matthew Timoko, 5 Manase Kaho, 6 Joe Roberts, 7 Toby Westcott, 8 Tyson Hodge, 9 Kyle Paterson, 10 Tom Robertson, 11 Lachlan Lewis, 12 Kai O'Donnell, 13 Darby Medlyn; Bench: 14 Jordan Martin, 15 Silafano Titiuti, 16 Duwayne Mariner, 17 Jackson Stuart
- SOUTH SYDNEY: 1 James Tautaiofua, 2 Kane Allan, 3 Marc Zaurrini, 4 Jaxson Paulo, 5 Nicholas Mougios, 6 Lachlan Illias, 7 Blake Taafe, 8 Luke Bain, 9 Josh Cook, 10 Aidan Manowski, 11 Tallis Angianga, 12 Matt French, 13 Josh Fepuleai; Bench: 14 Peter Mamouzelos, 15 Brad Zampech, 16 Luke Puru, 17 Iizaya Ranga Iti
Matt Findlay
Formerly a sports specialist, I'm based at Orange and shift between wide-spread range of subjects here and, often, across the entire Central West region of NSW as well. I have almost a decade of experience in the media and marketing industries both here in Australia and internationally, along with journalism I have experience in content strategy, brand development, and digital and social media. Along the way, I've been fortunate to win a handful of media awards and be nominated for several others too.
Formerly a sports specialist, I'm based at Orange and shift between wide-spread range of subjects here and, often, across the entire Central West region of NSW as well. I have almost a decade of experience in the media and marketing industries both here in Australia and internationally, along with journalism I have experience in content strategy, brand development, and digital and social media. Along the way, I've been fortunate to win a handful of media awards and be nominated for several others too.
