For Bo Abra 2019 has been a bit of a golden year.
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In June the front row forward helped the Junior Wallabies reach the under-20s World Championships final for the first time since 2010.
Now the former Pirate is preparing to pack down alongside, and against, some of his heroes after being recruited to a young but star-studded Canberra Vikings for the National Rugby Championship.
"This whole season has just been going up and up for me," Abra said.
Boasting the likes of over-looked Wallabies trio Tom Banks, Joe Powell and Pete Samu and a host of Brumbies stars, the Vikings squad looks formidable and Abra has a few times had to pinch himself.
"Yesterday (Tuesday) we were doing a contract drill and we had to get into groups of six. I sort of just got into this group and then looked up and I was with the likes of Pete Samu and Rob Valetini," he said.
The recently-turned 20-year old is loving every minute of it, and already in the short time he has been training with the squad - they only came together on Friday - is thriving being in that environment.
"I can already sort of feel it's making me push myself and lift to a higher level," he said.
His first taste of the NRC, which is designed as a stepping stone between club rugby and Super Rugby, Abra is eager to make an impact knowing where it could potentially lead.
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"Going into this all I want to do is try and impress, try and make a name for myself down here and then hopefully I can be a part of the Brumbies squad," he said.
"Or even getting a pre-season with the Brumbies would be amazing."
"But for now being in the NRC squad is awesome and I just have to keep on pushing myself."
It is a bit of a bonus. At the start of the year the NRC wasn't really on Abra's radar.
The Junior Wallabies "was the big picture".
Ironically it was while he was in Argentina that the aspiration to play in the NRC this year really started to take shape.
"I knew lots of the guys were getting looked at for the different squads so I was hoping that I'd be a part of it as well," he said.
The Vikings kick-off their campaign against the Melbourne Rising in Melbourne on Saturday, and Abra is expecting a "very quick and very physical" game.
Canberra Vikings squad: Tom Banks, Mack Hansen, Len Ikitau, Bayley Kuenzle, Noah Lolesio, Ryan Lonergan, George Morseu, Andy Muirhead, Joe Powell, Toni Pulu, Andrew Robinson, Irae Simone, Seamus Smith, Tom Wright, Angus Allen, Bowen Abra, Nick Dobson, Blake Enever, Nick Frost, Luke Gersekowski, Jake Helgesen, Fred Kaihea, Lachlan Lonergan, TP Luteru, Connal McInerney, Will Miller, Tom Ross, Pete Samu, Levi Shaw, Jake Simeon, Darcy Swain, Rob Valetini, Angus Wagner.
