Dubbo Kangaroos defeated Mudgee Wombats 14-12 in the Blowes Cup Colts Grand Final

Dubbo withheld countless Mudgee Wombats attacking chances to take a narrow 14-12 in the competition's final on Saturday morning at Ashwood Park.

With a strong gust blowing against them in the opening half, Dubbo was forced to defend for the majority of the opening period, something which put them in good stead for the remainder of the game.

Dubbo Roos co-coach Jason Blake thought the match was an outstanding display of rugby between the two sides.

"It was a very hard-fought win, the wind picked up in the second half," he said.

"We were under the pump in the first half and they put us under a fair bit of pressure.

"They turned us around a lot and it took both teams about 15 minutes to settle down."

After 20 minutes without points on the board, Mudgee eventually found a way through the Dubbo defence off a clever short ball.

The five-pointer was soon converted and Mudgee led 7-0 after enjoying the bulk of possession for the opening quarter of the match.

But Dubbo was able to march their way down into Mudgee's end and found some success on the halftime siren as Beau McKenzie burrowed his way over to score.

READ ALSO:

Billy Whillock's successful conversion meant we had a tied game at 7-all at the break.

Having the win now at their back, Dubbo launched an all-out attack on Mudgee, a tactic which soon paid off as Campbell Watts scored the side's second try of the match with Whillock once again nailing the conversion attempt.

Silly errors from Dubbo let Mudgee back into the game and the Wombats were camped down the Roos' end for the last 10-minute.

Things got worse for Roos as two players were sent off for repeated infringements and Mudgee made them pay.

A late Wombats try out wide gave them a chance to tie the game as the full-time siren sounded but the kick went wide, handing Dubbo the win.

With his side now champions, Blake said the core of the group will be able to return in 2023 while some will be ready for senior rugby.

"Considering the Roos didn't make the semi-finals last year it really is a credit to the program we put together," he said.

"They set goals at the beginning of the year which they wanted to achieve, realistic ones and they've ticked every box.

"We got 12 players who will still be eligible next year and we are hoping to continue to build on the strength of the side."

Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content: