Orange City colts coach Ben Watson said his side "really should be winning the grand final" after a gutsy win over the Dubbo Kangaroos on Saturday.
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It might seem like a huge statement with one round to play before finals, but it was another showcase of the skillful but also determined rugby his young Lions have played during their charge towards the minor premiership.
The Roos were their biggest enemy a lot of the time on Saturday, as the tough going on a heavy Pride Park track in Orange made any free-flowing rugby difficult.
The hosts were able to handle it the best and fired another warning shot to the rest of the competition.
"This is the first week where we've nearly been at full strength," Watson said.
"Barring a 10-man injury toll, we really should be winning the grand final. We're definitely heading in the right direction.
"I don't want to jinx us, but our side can definitely get it done."
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Paul Hausia, who coaches the Roos' colts along with the first grade outfit, lamented but also some poor decision-making at times from his youngsters.
"We created opportunities but we just couldn't finish," he said.
"They were just silly mistakes. We need to apply a bit more attention to detail. This is a team full of potential with some good kids, we just to stop making those silly decisions."
City's side is stacked top to bottom, but Hausia thinks the speedsters hold the key to their success.
"It's their backs, they're good," he said.
"That was the key element for them today."
Watson's biggest focus moving into the final stages of the season was not allowing any drop off from his players each week.
"It definitely wasn't our best performance," he said of Saturday's win.
"I think we played pretty well. We started strong but then we fell into a bit of a hole. The second-half was a bit scratchy."