ALL the preparation has come down to this moment for the Western Rams senior women's side.
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A Rams squad filled with potential will get their Country Championships under way this Sunday against the Riverina Bulls, looking to showcase how far the region's program has come in a short space of time.
Bulls had the measure of the Rams last time they met but a new-look Western squad - captained by Narromine's Bec Smyth - want to show why they believe they're a team to beat in this year's competition.
"I firmly believe in the girls who are in this squad," coach Kevin Grimshaw said.
"They've all earned their spot there from their form in the Western Women's Rugby League competition, and I've tried to get a really good balance between what we've got.
"They've all come together just like I thought they would. Everything's been really positive among the training group.
"Bec Smyth's not been afraid to give the girls a bit of a serve if they need it, which is what I was looking for. You can get comfortable on the field and you need an experienced player to say 'We need this out of you' and they're responding to her."
Captain and former Australian rugby representative Smyth and St George Illawarra Dragons player Cheynoah Amone make for a strong second row combination in this weekend's starting side.
Panorama Platypi combination Carly Abbott and Sarah Colman provide direction in the halves.
The centre pairing of dual code star Alahna Ryan and Kiara Sullivan, who scored in Group 11's win last weekend over rivals Group 10, are also sure to be in the thick of the action.
"They know that they've got a job to do. They've trained really well. It's been a smooth preparation. Everything is in place to go," Grimshaw said.
"We've really tried to concentrate on our defence and getting everyone to buy into what we want to do. We have to work together and help one another out in defence.
"We've got enough attacking flair to score points, so we just need to stop the opposition from scoring. That's why we've spent so much time working on those structures."
The match at Junee gets underway from 2pm.
- WESTERN RAMS WOMEN: 1 Tiana Anderson, 2 Sophie Tilburg, 3 Alahna Ryan, 4 Kiara Sullivan, 5 Emilie Brown, 6 Carly Abbott, 7 Sarah Colman, 8 Kandy Kennedy, 9 Xanthe Booth, 10 Aliesha Earsman, 11 Cheynoah Amone, 12 Rebecca Smyth (c), 13 Lily Baker, 14 Danielle Plummer, 15 Holly Jones, 16 Chelsea Amone, 17 Kate Gulliver, 18 Charli Robinson, 19 Lily Stubbs
Alexander Grant
Part of the Western Advocate's sports desk in Bathurst.
Part of the Western Advocate's sports desk in Bathurst.
