In the lead-up to one of the most intensive weeks of their young cricketing careers, the Northern Inland junior cricket sides have produced some remarkable form.
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On Sunday, three Bolters teams took to the fields of Tamworth, where many of their players enjoyed the benefit of a home crowd as they produced two wins and one loss in their respective NSW Youth Championships fixtures.
The under 15s got the ball rolling against Mid North Coast with an eight-wicket win at No. 1 Oval, which team mentor Adam Jones said was the result of the team's familiarity with one another.
"The nucleus of this side's been together for the last few years," Jones said.
"They won the under 13s competition, and they came second last year. They've only lost two games out of 16, I think. The expectations are high, but they're high because they've set such high standards for themselves."
After being asked to bowl first, Northern Inland's bowlers strangled Mid North Coast and restricted them to 112 from 48.4 overs, at the near-glacial run rate of just more than two per over.
Oliver Stubbs (3-17 from 10 overs) and Charley Pickens (2-14 from 10 overs) were the standouts, but Jones said all of the bowlers contributed.
"Those two guys were exceptional," he said.
"I think even the other guys, some of their figures might not be as good as the other two, but they bowled well as a unit."
The run chase was a simple affair, as Archie McMaster (48 not out) and Sam Davis (36) reiterated their love of batting together with another 70-run partnership which ensured the Bolters were never really in danger.
After they closed out the match with nearly 27 overs to spare, Jones summed the two young batters up neatly.
"They continue to show the quality players they are," he said.
"They're two of the best under 15 cricketers in NSW Country, or in NSW at the moment, I believe."
The Northern Inland under 14s were also asked to bowl first at Riverside 2, and also produced a suffocating performance in the first innings.
With 11 bowlers used, Blake Swilks (4-16 from eight overs) was the standout as Mid North Coast were restrained to 8-137 from 50 overs.
[Blake] did really well, and Max Judd bowled really well too. 10 overs straight in the heat, which is really impressive," coach George Wilson said.
In response, the Bolters took a slow-and-steady approach, knowing that there was no scoreboard pressure.
Sam Thompson (13) and Harrison Bailey (39 off 104 balls) played like classical openers and saw off the new ball, before contributions from Judd (11), Gabriel O'Connor (21 not out), and Swilks (18 not out) got them home with six overs to spare.
It was an impressive victory of attrition from a young team in extreme heat.
"We said just to bat the 50," Wilson said.
"There's no run rate pressure, and Harrison knocked it about and did exactly what he needed to as an opener ... he was very happy, but probably slight annoyed that he didn't get his 50. But happy that his team won and he set it up well."
The under 13s, meanwhile, were the only Northern Inland side to lose over the weekend.
They, too, bowled first, and there were some good performances from the likes of Lachlan Savage (3-33), Levi Morgan (2-15), and Isaac Stubbs (2-22), but 74 extras pushed Mid North Coast to a total of 191.
In response, the Bolters couldn't capitalise on a good start from Julian Collins (40) and Max Daly (27), and fell from 1-75 to 137 all out.
It was, overall, a positive weekend for the three Northern Inland junior sides, who will set off next week for the remainder of the Youth Championships, which will be played as a carnival.
