CELEBRATING a 100th first grade Blowes Cup appearance with a heart stopping success against your biggest rival - does it get any better than that?
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
It's the joyous experience Bathurst Bulldogs half Brad Glasson experienced in his side's high scoring 45-41 success against the Orange Emus at Endeavour Oval.
Glasson scored in the back-and-forth battle between last year's grand finalists, where the defending champion Bulldogs were able to extend their win streak to six games.
The Bulldogs number 10 began his first grade career seven years ago and since that season he - along with his legendary locks of hair - have been a staple of the Bulldogs top grade outfit.
With three top grade premierships and a host of great memories to look back on Glasson said it's been a great journey with the Bulldogs so far.
"For the body it feels like it's been 300 games," he said.
"I didn't know it was coming. It was a pleasant surprise, and for it to be against Emus was great. It was nice to be a part of and it was great to get the win.
"I remember I debuted against CSU at home under the lights in 2017. I think I only found out last week that the 100 was coming up.
"It's been a privilege and an honour. It's such a great club to be a part of."
Bulldogs and Emus play out another classic
When including last season's finals run and the preceding rounds the Bulldogs have now won their last 12 matches.
However, throughout that winning run the Bathurst men have been pushed to the limit on numerous occasions.
Along with their latest success it's the fourth time during their current win streak that they've won by 10 points or less.
Glasson said it was another top quality effort by the Bulldogs that was required to see off the Emus' late attacks.
"It was a pretty entertaining game to be a part of. When you're up against Emus you expect the best, and if you were a spectator you were pretty happy with the 80 minutes that were on display," he said.
"It was back and forth the entire time and great fun. We were defending on our own line towards the end. They had a lineout near our try line which went a bit long and was knocked on, which fortunately ended the game for us.
"That was nerve wracking stuff. It felt like a finals game even though it's only round six."
'Tonk' with a milestone of his own
Bulldogs second grade player Phil Tonkin brought up his 250th game for the club on Saturday.
He also got to celebrate a milestone game with success, coming away 29-13 winners to keep the team perched on top of their ladder.
The club made sure Tonkin got on the score sheet by kicking one of the Bulldogs' four penalty goals on the day.
"I've played with Tonk and watched him play for a long time now. That's been an honour," Glasson said.
"He's a very handy footballer and still definitely more than capable of playing first grade football on his day."
Victories to the women's side (17-0) and the still-unbeaten colts team (43-19) added to a great day away for the Bulldogs.
Bulldogs came up agonisingly short of the clean sweep at Orange after their third grade side went down 22-21.
