The Dubbo Bulls are no strangers to a grand final.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The consistency of the side has led them to claim the last three Western Premier League titles, and their win in last year's Dubbo and District Football Assocation capped off a ten year long run of grand final appearances.
The proximity to another title win could be one reason why the side is looking the best it has in 2020 ahead of a semi-final bout with Panorama.
READ ALSO:
"Everyone's feeling fit and ready to go, everyone in the side is pretty amped up," Coach Jason Schink said.
His side have met Panorama twice, and both times neither have been able to score a win, but there's a good chance of a different result this weekend.
"Two tough draws, one home and one away this year, so we've had a pretty good look at each other," Schink said.
"This is the first time we've played with our full team against them."
A few of those additions, like veteran James Leonard and young gun Thomas Busch could have a huge impact on Saturday's fixture, with Leonard's level head and Busch's striking ability both huge assets.
"Leonard's a big pick-up and last time out was Thomas Busch's first game back after missing nearly the whole year with an injury," Schink said.
"The goals and assists are coming for him now and more often than they have before."
Leonard himself was part of the side that won the last WPL title for the Dubbo Bulls and his experience has proved invaluable during the current campaign.
"James Leonard is just phenomenal, he's very hard to get past one on one and he's good at cleaning up errors, when he's there we're a lot more comfortable playing our footy up front."
"He's just really good at reading the game and understanding how to move our backline around."
While a shock loss to the Parkes Cobra just a few weeks ago may have shown just how competitive the the WPL is this year, it lit a fire under the Bulls.
"The turnaround has been huge since that loss, we had a dominant win over Macquarie United and over Lithgow, they're two of the top teams, we're definitely finishing better than the middle of the season," Schink said.
"We're still in there and we're really aiming for another grand final, so I definitely wouldn't want to be playing us in the finals."
The Bulls will meet Panorama at 3pm at Apex Oval on Saturday, with their matchup followed by the remaining semi-final, a clash between minor premiers Macquarie United and Lithgow Workmen at 5pm.
Tickets to both games can be claimed for free through Eventbrite.