WHEN Dave Conyers witnessed his CSU side come from a 19-point deficit to beat Narromine in this year's New Holland Cup grand final, it was one of the best moments of his long coaching career.
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To clinch a 30-29 win with a sideline penalty three minutes from full-time on the Gorillas home turf - a venue where CSU had conceded 107 points across two games earlier that season - had Conyers saying: "It's probably the best feeling I've ever had winning something."
"The unwinnable grand final we are calling it," he said.
But now Conyers has another honour to go with that remarkable triumph.
He has been voted the Central West Rugby Union's coach of the year in people's choice awards. Conyers received 36.12 per cent of the votes cast to beat out Luke Mack (Narromine), Dean Oxley (Bathurst Bulldogs), Mark Elia (Cootamundra Tri-Colours), Greg Brien (Wellington Redbacks).
"That's fantastic, gee I'm happy about that," he said.
"I've been coaching for a while, it's my 30th consecutive year as a coach, so you get to know a lot of people in that time and learn a lot of stuff. It's half your life when you think about it, so these sort of things are just great.
"It's just nice to know that even though we are a second grade comp we are respected that way, it's really good.
"Dean Oxley, he's obviously been up there big time. When I saw Oxley in there, I thought that he got coach of the year at the grand final in the Central West awards, he won country week and he won Bulldogs a premiership, so I really thought he would have got it over me."
As for what was the key to guiding CSU to their first premiership in 15 years, Conyers was quick to single it out.
"Discipline was all they lacked really, everything else was there, they just needed some discipline and that was the winning formula," he said.
With a heart operation scheduled for next month - he has four stents which need fixing - Conyers is not yet sure what season 2020 will bring. His first priority will be on recovery.
But whether or not he CSU coaches, such is Conyers' passion for rugby he will no doubt be keeping a close eye on the students' title defence.