The Temora Rugby Union Club’s women’s side (Tuskerettes) will head into Saturday’s Central West Rugby Union South West Fuels Cup Grand Final with confidence. However, the Tuskerettes’ coach Bill McCrone realises his side will have to be at its best against a Grenfell Pink Panthers’ team that defeated the Harden Red Devils 31-5 in an impressive preliminary final victory last Saturday. McCrone travelled to Harden on Saturday with several players on a reconnaissance mission to watch Grenfell book their place in the decider. He said Grenfell’s defence stood out during the contest and identified several areas his side would need to address before the premiership decider. “Grenfell were fairly impressive in their win over Harden,” McCrone said. “They were very enthusiastic in defence and put a lot of pressure on Harden early in the game which we’ll need to counter in the Grand Final. “They also played a fairly forwards-dominated game and found success through the middle of the ruck, so we’ll have to muscle up there.” The Tuskerettes have had the upper hand over Grenfell throughout the season, winning all three meetings, but McCrone said those results would count for little once the big game kicks off. “We saw how they played against us in the second half of the major semi-final at Cootamundra and how dangerous they can be when they dominate possession, so we'll need to focus on holding on to the ball when we’ve got it and trying to build pressure on them through our defence when they've got it,” McCrone said. “We’ve got the better of Grenfell on the three occasions we’ve faced them this season, but everyone knows that anything can happen in grand finals and they’ll be full of confidence after their good win on the weekend.” This week, the Tuskerettes’ focus has been on preparing for the biggest game of the season, including the “all-important training run” tonight (Thursday). “A few of the players got together on Sunday and we met up a few times this week to build up to the game,” McCrone said. “We’ll be working on getting our jobs right - making our tackles, backing each other up and if we put the effort in and can get those things right on the day, hopefully the result takes care of itself.” With a premiership up for grabs, the Tuskerettes know they face a tough assignment, but will enter the big game determined to finish a strong season in the best possible fashion. The Grand Final is scheduled for 1.30pm at Boorowa.
