ROBB College has been focused on its forwards and technique in the lead up to its first grand final berth in eight years.
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The students will face up to premiers and minor premiers the Armidale Blues.
Armidale is hot favourite to go back to back but Robb captain Tom Kent thinks they have had their time.
“It is no excuse but we haven’t faced them at full strength,” Kent said.
“We have some more boys coming back in and are pretty confident.”
The skipper said the game rests on the shoulders of his forward pack.
“We have been very forward- focused at training,” Kent said.
“If we can win the set pieces and the forwards get on top early, the backs will put the points on.”
Last week the students capitalised on mistakes to beat old foes St Albert’s and want to take that attitude with them into the big one.
“We lost that bit of mongrel when we had a week off,” Kent said.
“We got a bit back and have had good focus at training.”
Robb has called on specialist forward coach Jason Lincoln to look at its set pieces.
“If we get the technique and structure right and numbers to the ruck we will be on top,” Kent said.
“Then we get good ball to the backs.”
Outside centre Josh Carter is a big possibility of playing after two weeks off with an ankle injury.
“He (Carter) is pretty handy in the backs,” Kent said.
The side also has a few others back in, with the skipper confident it is one of the best they have fielded this season.
Coach Jim Boland has told the playing group to “embrace the big week”.
The coach doesn’t want the side to fall into the trap of playing the Blues’ game.
“They are good at turning games against us,” Kent said.
“We have just got to keep it together.”
Two new awards have been created this season as the NERU gives a nod to the past and present.
The John Hipwell Memorial Trophy for best representative player went to Guyra’s Greg Hill.
The U20 John Hipwell trophy went to St Albert’s Ollie Bartlett.
The John Croft award goes to the best club executives.
Croft has given over 40 years’ service to the NERU and has been honoured with this perpetual award.
This year, Courtney Moody from Robb College and Heather Sills from the Guyra Rugby Club took the award for their work on game days.
