The Bears ran in 14 tries against a Blues side which had a number of positional changes before the match and then copped more injuries throughout.

Losing captain-coach Lachlan Cameron to an ankle injury sustained in Saturday’s Country Championship Tier 2 Final loss against Riverina didn’t help.

Cameron stood in a moon boot throughout the game willing his young side on.

Losing two players early on in the game didn’t help either while prop Jake Rumsby produced a valiant effort.

He was instrumental in the Blues pulling back a 16-nil deficit to trail 16-10 in the first half with some big defence.

However he also dislocated his right shoulder again in the second half but returned to  finish the game despite playing injured.

“Andrew Harvey also played a full game in second grade and virtually a full game of first grade,” Cameron said.

“We can’t knock the spirit here. The effort was there.”

Second-rowers Joel Hogan and Sam Sadler were outstanding and   Adam Rooney, who was to have played halfback, played strongly at lock.

The Bears had not played for almost a month and it showed at times.

“We didn’t respond that well but a lot of that’s because of the lack of match fitness,” captain coach Zac Russ said. “You lose the muscle memory. 

“We hadn’t played for a month so we weren’t quite as sharp as we could have been.”

The Bears had plenty of willing workers.

Nic Dobson was one. 

He was crunched in a Sam Sadler front-on special in the second half but a play later was backing up and setting up a try for the Bears.

Callum Hayne was always dangerous too, the little fullback’s pace earning him three tries on a day where the Bears’ Greater Northern  Tiger reps, Shane-Leigh Wadwell and Scott Blanch, also crossed for three tries.

Big prop Bill Jeffery, James Cooper and Jake Cocking also crossed for tries as the Bear pack began the task of re-igniting the club’s premiership defence.

That centres on Gunnedah this weekend while the Oxley Diggers host Narrabri at Scully Park and the Lions have a first grade bye.