After the best year of his career Jayden Blake had an inkling he might get an award or two when the season came to a close.
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But the past week has still been one full of surprises.
The Dubbo Kangaroos star was handed two major honours recently with each being awarded for vastly different reasons.
The biggest came at the Dubbo Junior Rugby Club presentation when the supremely talented five-eighth was given the prize for the NSW Country Rugby Union junior player of the year.
That was followed by the handing over of the annual Rivwest Perpetual Trophy.
While the NSW Country Rugby prize celebrates the outstanding achievements Blake has made on the field in 2019, the Rivwest Perpetual Trophyis awarded to the Dubbo Junior Rugby Club player who best exemplifies the qualities of sportsmanship, leadership, and citizenship.
"It's pretty special," Blake said of the Rivwest prize, which was presented by Bob Elliott.
"When it was awarded to me I didn't have much to say and I didn't know what to say. I didn't expect this and it's good and I feel honoured to have received it.
"It feels good to know people have recognised your efforts."
While softly-spoken a lot of the time, Blake has led by example for much of the year.
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He starred for the Dubbo Blue under 17s side which won this season's Central West Junior Rugby Union premiership while he collected a swag of representative honours.
He was part of the NSW Country under 18s squad which toured North America early in the year but the highlight came midway through the season when he was part of the NSW under 18s side wich played a number of matches and also spent time working alongside the Waratahs.
"There was a week of training at the Waratahs' camp and that gives you a taste of life as a professional player," Blake said, before looking at the year he had.
"It's been great. It was good to experience things and rugby has taken me all over the place.
"I've met a lot of new friends and there's really good bonds there."
While there was numerous high points for Blake, a swinging arm which struck him across the face in the under 17s grand final last month put a dampener on things.
He was taken to hospital following the hit, meaning he missed the end of the victory and the ensuing presentation, while the broken nose suffered has ruled him out of this weekend's Central West Schoolboy Barbarians game at Bathurst.
The season isn't done just yet though, with a sevens carnival at Forster next month to bring down the curtain on what has been a massive 2019 for Blake.
Next season he'll make the step up to colts locally but he will still be eligible for under 18 representative duties.
Nick Guthrie
I started working at the Daily Liberal in 2013 and now hold the position of senior sports journalist for Western NSW, covering all that's happening in in Dubbo, Orange, Bathurst and everywhere in between. Contact me at nick.guthrie@acm.media
