Cahill was the 2021 WPL Player of the Year after starring for a Spurs side which was top of the ladder when the competition was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The expectation was he would move away again this year and while that is the case, it isn't happening just yet.

"He'll be playing for, hopefully, half the season before he goes to America," returning head coach Ben Manson said.

"He's been accepted to play semi-professional soccer at a college there, he's got a scholarship, and that's because of the Western Premier League."

With at least one WPL match live-streamed each week last season there was plenty of eyes on the competition and Cahill was spotted and scouted by a number of American colleges and teams.

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A player who became well known as "Mullet Messi" last season, Cahill will link up with the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs Mountain Lions later this year.

"I think it's just excellent and it just shows how far this competition can take someone," Manson added.

"It's still growing and I wouldn't be surprised if in five or 10 years' time the players are getting paid like they do in rugby league here in Dubbo.

"People will start to see how great and how big the competition is out this way and I hope it does keep growing because there's so much talent out here people don't see."

The development of the WPL is clear to see.

The 2022 season will be the third since the competition was revived after a six-year absence and team numbers are again on the rise.

After seven clubs took part in the inaugural 2020 season there was nine involved last year. In 2022 that number could as high as 11 with Orange CYMS locked in while former regional powerhouse Bathurst '75 may also return.

A bigger and better competition means Spurs face a real challenge this year but there's a huge amount of motivation within the camp.

"The only way to really keep winning is to get better each year. You want to keep similar tactics and play a similar style of football but you need to get better every year to stay at the top and to push for finals football," Manson said.

"That's the goal for us every year, to play finals football. Getting first was icing on the cake but if we make top five we're happy with that."

When the 2021 competition was cancelled the WPL made the decision not to award premierships or minor premierships, something which Manson described as "heartbreaking" at the time.

But everyone involved has moved on and there's already plenty of excitement in the club heading into trials for the WPL squad, which will be held on the next two Sundays.

"I was worried it (last season) was going to have an adverse affect and the boys would be let down and give it up but it's been the opposite and they're even hungrier now," Manson said.

"There's been interest from other players who want to come across and even from players from around the Central West who want to play for Spurs so we're excited to see what the trials bring."

Once the trials are completed Spurs are planning on a number of pre-season matches with one game in Canberra already locked in.

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