WHEN Nicole Schneider fumbled the ball from the kick-off reception when Saturday's Ferguson Cup grand final was only seconds old - even though she recovered without knocking on - she told herself she needed to step up.
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And step up the Bathurst Bulldogs talent most certainly did.
Every kick Orange Emus kick which was directed at Schneider after that brought with it moments for the Bulldogs' highlights reel.
She charged at Emus defence, burst through tackles and made the sort of post-contact metres that inspire a team.
But that was not the only valuable contribution she made and what had Bulldogs first grade coach Dean Oxley - watching on from the sidelines - speak about her as a key figure.
She tackled hard in defence, toiled at the breakdown and put herself into position to support her team-mates.
It was those sort of efforts - and that Schneider was not the only Bathurst Bulldog to produce them - which led the blue and yellows to a 34-28 triumph.
"It wasn't an ideal start, I knew I had to step up from that point, that's for sure," she said.
"I think the level that Emus had shown all year, a few weeks ago when they gave us a hiding, that really made us think we've got to step this up a notch, they're coming for us.
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"We saw all year they tried to knock us down, we saw how hard they worked and we knew if we were going to beat Emus, we had to get going and work to get back up there. We had to step it up.
"Never have I played in a match like that, not even at country champs in our grand final, that was something else. It was amazing."
While the win was certainly hard earned - Emus scored first and took things down to the final minutes - Schneider said she always had belief her Bulldogs could get the job done.
"I don't think I did have doubt, even before the game I wasn't as nervous as I was last week. We trained well, we warmed up well, everything felt right and we got it done," she said.
"Three in a row? I never thought we'd get this far, but it's awesome."
