The Dunedoo Swans created a slice of history on Saturday by securing two premierships on Castlereagh League grand final day.
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As well as taking out the day's main game at Gilgandra's Tony McGrane Oval the Dunedoo club also claimed the silverware in the league tag decider to ensure it was a memorable day for those in green and white.
The Swans' defence had been the backbone of their success throughout the 2020 first grade campaign and it was again repeatedly called on throughout their grand final encounter with the Gilgandra Panthers.
The match was a tight one, both on the scoreboard and on the field with the two sides evenly matched in every department.
The home side looked as if they were off to a flyer in the third minute but when their second rower, Jordan Reynolds, appeared to have scored but was pulled back for a forward pass.
Dunedoo then went on the attack for an extended period but a scrambling Gilgandra defence was able to hold them out until a high bomb was put down and Swans winger Jarrod Toole was able to pick up the loose ball to make it 4-0 after 15 minutes.
It was only three minutes later the Panthers replied when a passing rush down the left flank saw their diminutive winger Tyler Bamblett go over in the corner to make it 4-all.
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The Panthers not long after had a player in the bin, but were able to get through that period of play without any damage being done on the scoreboard, however they did concede a penalty right on half time and the Swans went to the sheds as 6-4 leaders.
It was to be the opening eight minutes of the second half that proved to be pivotal to the final result, with the Swans crossing for two tries.
The first went to centre Will Wood out wide and then their halfback and captain and co-coach Tim Condon was able to scoop up a grubber kick and dive over from close range to ensure a 16-4 lead.
That was to be the end of the scoring for the Swans, and from that point on it was to be their defensive effort that saw them home with the Panthers being unable to crack the green and white wall until a charging run by Ned Kelly saw him score what was to be a converted try with three minutes to cut the lead to 16-10.
The final few minutes were nerve-wracking for supporters of both sides but in the end the Swans deservedly prevailed.
It continued the celebrations for the Swans fans after the earlier league tag triumph.
The Swanettes were playing in their first grand final while Baradine was aiming for a third successive triumph on Saturday.
The battle between the best sides all year failed to disappoint as Dunedoo rallied and scored a brilliant come-from-behind 26-22 victory.
Early in proceedings it was looking as if the Magpies were well on their way to victory leading 12-0 before the Swans made a comeback of sorts towards the end of the first half to cut the lead to 18-10.
That lead increased by four early in the second half and the odds of a Swannettes win looked somewhat dismal with the scoreboard reading 22-10.
It soon became quite obvious that no matter what the odds the Swannettes were not going to throw in the towel and they began to play some of the great attacking team play that they are known for to run in three unanswered tries, two converted, to take the lead and make the score 26-22.
The frantic final few minutes had the highly vocal supporters from both clubs on their edge of their seats with the Magpiettes hammering away from close range only to be turned away by a stubborn Dunedoo defence.
The game wasn't decided until the final second of the gripping match when a Baradine player was stripped of her tag as she was reaching down to score.
The huge spectator interest in the game was again a testimony as to just how important league tag is the Castlereagh League competition and just how much it means to clubs and their supporters.
The tag decider had followed on from the Youth League contest, which was won by Cobar.
The Roosters secured back-to-back premierships by defeating the Coonamble Bears 18-16.
The win was set-up early as the Roosters led 18-0 at the break and while the Bears produced a valiant comeback it wasn't enough in the first decider of the day.
