The Tamworth Swans have officially ended a 16-year minor premiership drought.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
After confirming earlier this week that there is no chance of catching up the derby game that was washed out on Saturday, it is now impossible for the Swans men's side to finish anywhere but first place on the ladder.
It marks the first time the Swans have claimed the minor premiership since 2006.
Club president, Josh McKenzie, said the achievement was "vindication" for the players.
Also read:
"It's good vindication of what the team has achieved this year and how hard they've worked," McKenzie said.
But, he added, with finals just around the corner, "the job's not done".
Co-coach Josh Jones echoed McKenzie's sentiments, and said the minor premiership wasn't front of mind for the club, but it was "exciting" and did represent how steady the men's team has been in 2022.
"It just shows how consistent we've been this year," he said.
"We've had a number of different players each week, but the players we do have are all very keen and all want to attain the same goal."
With one match remaining before finals begin, however, the Swans are careful not to get ahead of themselves. Their clash against the Narrabri Eagles and Moree Suns (NEMS) combined side this Saturday will mark the official end of the home and away season.
Although the NEMS side has at times struggled to pull together teams for away games this season, Jones has heard that they are "quite keen and wanting a game" this weekend.
The Swans will enter the first-versus-last clash as heavy favourites, but the team intends to take the game seriously and use it as an opportunity to fine-tune ahead of finals.
"We'll continue to work on the stuff that's held us in good stead this year," Jones said.
"Hopefully we'll get our main side that we'll line up with in round one of finals next week on the park. That way we can work on certain structures and make sure we're ready to go."
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can continue to access our trusted content:
- Bookmark northerndailyleader.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Google News