Western Rams mentor Kurt Hancock believes there's no reason why this season's junior stars can't follow in the footsteps of players like Isaah Yeo, Matt Burton and Charlie Staines.
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The Western Rams recently held their presentation night, recognising the under 16s, under 18s and league tag players who has shone brightest in 2022.
Hancock, who coached the Rams under 18s again this season, has no doubt many of the players who received awards at Bathurst have what it takes to keep achieving at a higher level.
Orange pair Lachie Lawson and Harry Wald were named the players of the year for the under 18s and under 16s respectively after standout campaigns.
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Tallis Tobin and Ajay Isbester collected the most improved awards for the two sides and the development of the pair and almost every other player involved in the Rams this season created plenty of excitement.
Whether or not they go on to bigger things remains to be seen, but the Western region has already been responsible for producing a string of successful graduates.
Burton, an NRL premiership winner who made his NSW State of Origin debut last month, and Penrith Panther Staines were both part of the under 18s Rams side that went undefeated in 2017.
There are a host of other Western products that have played NRL too and with Penrith Panthers keeping a close eye on the region, it's likely more will follow.
"I think the Panthers are going to be doing a bit more stuff with us now, it's been a bit limited with COVID but they're still heavily invested in what we are doing," Hancock said.
"The Panthers have been really good to us, we've got a bit of an honour list going down there at the moment. There's a clear pathway.
"There's no reason why we can't produce more players like the Matt Burtons and the Charlie Staines and Isaah Yeos."
Orange Hawks young gun Lawson was one of the only under 18s players to return this season after being part of Hancock's squad in 2021.
The centre was named captain of the Rams this year and while his side missed out on a place in the semi-finals, he proved himself one of the best players in the competition.
"He's probably epitomises what Western Rams is all about. He led us really, really well, he loved wearing that jersey and his performances showed that," Hancock said.
"He was really, really close to a New South Wales Country jersey, he was mentioned in selections. Probably not playing semi-finals cost him.
"But he's everything you want in a player when it comes to Western Rams. I've coached some pretty high levels of footy and effectively he's probably one of the best defensive centres we've had.
"Defensively he makes smart decisions on that edge, he really helps you get out of your own end and he's got the ability to score sneaky tries too."
Bathurst Panthers prop Tobin was another who impressed, getting through a huge amount of work up-front while his efforts in defence were also noticed by Hancock.
"He really committed to the program this year, he dropped a fair bit of weight and trained pretty hard. I thought he led us from the front," Hancock said.
"He was really good for us. He's always had that potential underlying there, but I guess he really committed to the program and he got himself nice and fit and that made a difference.
"I think he's still got a lot more to offer there too. I see he's gone back to play for Panthers and he's played well which is really, really promising.
"That's what we aim for these young fellas to do, if a Sydney club doesn't come knocking, but they go back to their local club and play well there and become leaders, well that's even better."
Orange CYMS talent Nick Murphy might not have collected an award but the electric attacker, who played at fullback and halfback, is another Hancock has a high opinion of.
