Playing the Northern Tigers, the under 16s enjoyed a comfortable win in its match, while the under 18s had a much closer victory

Western Rams game development officer Dave Elvy was at Denman on Sunday for the trials and said it was an important hit-out for both teams ahead of the start of the Andrew Johns Cup (under 16s) and Laurie Daley Cup (under 18s) on Sunday, February 6.

"It's really important for them to have those trials before the championships start next weekend," he said.

"They've got 25 kids and the coaches have to pick their final 18, so it's pretty good to have a trial. It's also good to get some game time and fitness heading into the championship."

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Molong's Bailey Peschka and Orange junior Lachlan Lawson were players who caught the eye for the under 16s and under 18s respectively.

All-round, Elvy was impressed by both teams and believes Western can enjoy some success in 2022.

"Our teams gelled really well and were quite impressive. I reckon we could be in for a good year, hopefully," he said.

"We've got a big camp down at Warren this weekend, so that's a great chance for them to come together and do a bit of work before the championships."

The build-up hasn't been ideal due to the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic but Elvy knows teams all around the state are in the same boat.

The Rams had planned to play a trial against Riverina earlier in the month, but that was cancelled, as were a number of satellite sessions across the region.

"It's just like anything, COVID has been a challenge," Elvy said.

"Like leading into Christmas, we couldn't do a lot of our satellite sessions in Dubbo, Forbes and Bathurst due to not being able to get into schools where we normally run them.

"But a lot of these kids do a lot of work on their own and have prepared as best they can, so there's no real excuses.

"I think they've prepared pretty well. We've prepared pretty well. We had two camps, one just before Christmas and one this weekend. A lot of regions normally only get one."

The Rams sides meet the Illawarra South Coast Dragons at Wollongong on February 6.

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