She's been among their best this season, but Shaine Maunder's path back to the field for Narrabri was far from easy.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Deciding to lace up the boots again after having daughter Lottie in September, Maunder said it was a lot of hard work.
"I was really fortunate to have a great birth but I worked really really hard to come back," she said.
Finding time whenever she could between being a mum of two - Matilda is three - and helping run a farm and harvest contracting business, it sometimes meant slogging it out in the summer heat.
But, ever determined, Maunder didn't let that stop her.
"I had a goal. I wanted to be ready for pre-season, so just every day turned up," she said.
Her first game back was their trial game against her alma mater St Albert's, and was, she admits, "really tough".
"I forgot how physical tackle is," Maunder said.
"But after that I sort of found my groove."
Her first season since before she had Matilda, you wouldn't know she hadn't played for four years.
Speaking with the Leader earlier in the season, younger brother Joe said she was "going really well". He even went as far as to joke that she's "nearly better" than he and brother Tom "put together".
Both also play for the Blue Boars.
The family connection to the club is a multi-faceted one for Maunder, with husband Jack a stalwart of the first grade side.
Against Quirindi recently, he played his 150th game for the club.
"That's a pretty exciting milestone for him considering that he was really adamant on retirement," a proud Shaine said.
"Just at the start of the year he decided that he didn't want to retire."
She joked that part of his motivation was probably that he didn't want to look after the kids by himself on Tuesday and Thursday nights while she was at training.
Whatever the reason, it is nice to be able to play together, and with her brothers as well.
"It's pretty exciting to go to the footy with my whole family every weekend," she said.
"That's not something that everyone gets to do so I'm really fortunate to do that."
They take Lottie and Matilda to the games as much as they can.
The latter is a potential little Blue Boar in the making.
She's always asking to go to the footy and, as Maunder tells "loves to pretend to tackle us at home and stuff."
The 26-year-old reflected on how "fortunate" they are to have the support system they do, and particularly expressed gratitude to their "angel", nanny Maddy.
"She's our saving grace, she allows us to play and she's really supportive of us playing," she said.
"My parents also help out a lot."
Her brothers too, if needed.
And if none of them can, then they have the Blue Boars family.
"Everyone gets around the kids and is really supportive of the kids," Maunder said.
"I have taken the kids to training and girls that aren't training have held them and fed them."
Talking to the Leader following the Blue Boars' 27-5 win over Pirates on Saturday, she was looking forward to a relaxing well-earned week's break at Airlie Beach.
Their first holiday since last January, no doubt the sunny skies and warmer temperatures held extra appeal after the wet and muddy conditions they played in.
"It was a great game for us. We really pulled together and played really well together, everyone did their jobs really well today," Maunder said.
The win gave them a three point buffer over Gunnedah at the top of the table heading into the second round.
