With the coming weekend playing host to the Southern Inland Rugby Union Grand Finals on August 17, Conolly Rugby Park in Wagga Wagga shapes as the place to be for anyone eager to see the SIRU deciders play out.
Wagga City have proven to be a dominant force in the 2024 season, claiming the minor premiership after going undefeated in the regular season, before taking down the Waratahs in the Semi-Finals to advance to the big dance.
Certainly after revenge and looking to complete an upset, the Waratahs are hoping they can find their first win over Wagga City this season after falling to the club three times so far, with two of which having margins of less than 10 points.
The Waratahs will however come into the match with a head full of steam after advancing to the decider win a 33-31 point thriller over the Tumut Bulls.
Are Wagga City truly unbeatable in 2024 or have the Waratahs peaked at the most important time of the season?
Another David and Goliath tale takes place in the Women's Grand Final as the undefeated Griffith side take on Tumut.
Finishing the regular season with a staggering 440 point for and against, the Griffith Women have shown their ability to win, and do it well this season. Having just two matches decided by 10 points or less the side will be hoping for business as usual as they look to pile on the points once again on Saturday.
Meanwhile the Tumut side are well acclimatised to fighting hard for their wins. Nine of the Bulls wins in 2024 have been decided by 10 points or less, the polar opposite of their dance partners in the decider. Seemingly this may present itself as a win condition for the underdogs; draw Griffith to where they may not be comfortable, a close match.
Only time will tell if Griffith do have an Achilles' heel, as the matchup shapes up to be another blockbuster affair in Wagga Wagga,
Building a promising future for the club the Wagga City second grade have followed suit with their first grade counterparts, as dominant rugby has also landed them in the Grand Final after an undefeated 2024.
Aiming to take Wagga City down a peg on their home turf in second grade are the Reddies, after finishing third place after battling to six wins, a draw and five losses, the side have a newfound momentum after taking down Tumut and Leeton in back-to-back Semi Finals.
The sides have met twice this season, with Wagga City the convincing victors on occcassions in both May and June. Since the last meeting the Reddies have had plenty of time to recoup as they found four additional wins on their path to the Grand Final.
A similar case to the Women's matchup, the Reddies present themselves as grinders. Despite finishing third with more wins than losses, they finished the regular season with a negative for and against showing how hard earned each win is for the side. Wagga City however tend to score plenty and defend well, with their closest margin all year being a nine point win over WAC.
Across to third grade, the two sides battling it out will be the minor premiership winning Hay taking on Griffith. With just four sides in the division, Griffith are a true wildcard side after going into finals with a 2 win, 4 loss record then going on to beat a second placed Wagga City side in the Preliminary Final.
Despite two 40-0 wins in the matchup this year for Hay the match shapes to be perhaps the most interesting of the day as Griffith seem to be a much difference side to what they were early in the season.
Write off Griffith at your own risk, as Wagga City also beat them 45-0 in July before losing to the side when it mattered most in the prelims. The match is certainly Hay's to lose but as everyone knows; anything can happen on Grand Final day.
