PREMIERSHIPS, Australian representatives, hosting a Super W fixture - season 2019 was certainly a big one for Bathurst rugby union.
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Here's a look at the year that was from A to Z.
IT might be odd to list a ground as a highlight, but Ashwood Park played an important role in the 2019 season.
This year was the first time the Bathurst Bulldogs hosted a grand final day at the venue and it attracted a huge crowd. The club's first XV also made it a fortress - they extended their undefeated run at Ashwood Park to 23 games.
CSU came within one win of making its second consecutive Ferguson Cup grand final and one of the highlights of its impressive campaign was the form of skipper Rachel Brown.
She made countless yards, was tireless in defence and sparked a host of CSU's successful attacking raids during the season.
It saw Brown rank highly in the competition's best and fairest vote count as well.
DAVE Conyers has coached rugby union teams across the globe in his many years as a mentor, but one of his finest moments came this season.
Along with Peter Koen, Conyers helped guide CSU's first XV to its first Central West Rugby Union premiership in 15 years.
He was also selected as the Central West Rugby Union's coach of the year in people's choice awards.
"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," Conyers said.
"It's just nice to know that even though we are a second grade comp we are respected that way, it's really good."
ADAM Dwyer won a premiership the first year he played with Bathurst Bulldogs and in 2019 when walked off the field in the renowned blue and yellow jumper for the final time, it was as a grand final victor once more.
While he initially began the season as co-coach of the second grade side, Dwyer was lured back into playing in the first XV for one last time in 2019.
"It wasn't really the plan at the start of the year, the plan was just to coach," Dwyer, who lined up in the second row, said.
"But I kept doing a bit of fitness and got half fit and then played second grade, then sat on the bench for first grade. After playing first grade that one time, I got the bug again and sort of stayed there."
IF you wanted a word that best sums up the sort of season that Regan Hughes had for CSU, 'epic' would be it.
The star centre scored a glut of tries for the students this season - his efforts including crossing five times in one match against Parkes - and it was little surprise he picked up one of the New Holland Cup's major prizes on grand final day.
CALDWELL Cup victor, premiership winning captain and the Blowes Clothing Cup player of the year - season 2019 will be one that Bathurst Bulldog Peter Fitzsimmons will long remember.
The smile on the face of the Bulldogs skipper when he raised the premiership shield at Ashwood Park on grand final day - he led his men to a 27-24 win over Orange Emus - was hard-earned and well deserved.
It was the first time in his seven years in the top grade he had experienced a grand final triumph.
"How good is rugby? How good is footy? You live for moments like this," Fitzsimmons said.
"Beating Emus, it's a bit of redemption. They've had a lot of years at the helm, they've been the mark to beat.
"I've won a colts premiership, but this is seven years in first grade for me. For a few boys this is their first year and credit to them, they got it in their first year, but it's been a long time coming for me."
BATHURST clubs enjoyed their strongest ever presence in Central West Rugby Union grand finals this season.
CSU made, and won, the second tier New Holland Cup grand final while Bathurst Bulldogs qualified all its five sides for deciders.
The Bulldogs women's Ferguson Cup outfit plus the thirds and first XV Blowes Clothing Cup teams all posted grand final wins over Emus.
TOM Hooper helped the Australian Schoolboys outfit win the Trans-Tasman Shield over New Zealand for the first time in seven years.
It was a gripping contest as the Stannies graduate and his team-mates held on against their Kiwi rivals to post an 18-14 victory in Hamilton.
"We got a bit of a fright at the end there with that last minute try but it's great to get away with the win. It's huge. I still can't really believe it," he said.
"We talked about our goal line defence and in the first 10 minutes they had us under the pump. To turn that defence into attack and then score a try 80 metres down the field was a big confidence boost.
"There was a lot of talk about preparing for the game physically. I think we just turned up a lot more hungry for the win.
"Although the last minutes were scary we never thought we were going to lose. We all backed each other and thought we had the physicality to finish off the game."
BATHURST hosted the visiting Samoan Schoolboys squad at Ashwood Park in 2019 and they certainly showed their class. They posted a 79-7 win over the Central West Schoolboys.
Bathurst's Shane Cantrill, who coached the Central West side, is hopeful the region can continue to attract high-level international opposition to help expose more rural players to tough rugby.
"I'd say some of those boys aren't too far away [from senior international games]," he said of the Samoan side.
"They had a really sharp back line and some of their loose forwards were really dynamic and they were around the paddock the whole time."
JAKIYA Whitfeld further enhanced her reputation as one of the most exciting rugby union prospects in Bathurst during a stellar season 2019.
Not only did she score a glut of tries in the Ferguson Cup for the Bathurst Bulldogs and in the AON Uni 7s for Sydney University, but Whitfeld also made her World Sevens Series debut for Australia.
"What a freak," Sydney Uni Sport and Fitness declared on its Facebook account. "Jakiya Whitfeld, who has been dubbed 'Winx', absolutely carved up on her Australian 7s debut in Cape Town, scoring a stack of tries."
HE was one of CSU's best every time he played, so it was fitting that Jack Keppel ended his time with the students on a massive high note.
Keppel's successful penalty kick gave CSU a 30-29 win over defending champions Narromine Gorillas in the New Holland Cup grand final at Cale Oval.
"It's a win not just for myself and my current teammates but for all those guys I've played with before. There's been a lot of hard work from the coaches who have come before and it's been building to this game," he said.
"It's a huge win for anyone involved in the club. Being a part of it all is unreal."
BATHURST Bulldogs stalwarts Col Kemp and Adam Hart were both nominated and unanimously voted in as the club's most recent life members.
Kemp first joined the club back in 1987 and over his time, he's played, coached and been on the committee.
He played 275 games for the club and won many premierships across his 32 years of service to the Bulldogs.
Hart's involvement with the Bulldogs began with his early playing days in the late 1970s, playing 172 games for the club, with 18 of those in first grade.
STANNIES skipper Cam Trengove enjoyed a magic moment when he and his NSW I outfit crushed Queensland I to the tune of 58-5 in the Australian Schools Rugby Union Championship decider at Riverview.
"I couldn't believe it, it was very good," Trengove said.
"There were like four tries in five minutes - you could see the structures the coaches had been teaching us all week just come together."
IT was revealed a Bathurst rugby rivalry will be reignited next season with the Bathurst Bulldogs set to field teams in the New Holland Cup.
It will mean that CSU - the defending champions - will do battle with Bulldogs for the first time since the 2017 Blowes Clothing Cup season.
DEAN Oxley is a man who is passionate about coaching, so season 2019 will be one he long remembers.
He guided the Blue Bulls to Caldwell Cup glory, was named the Blowes Clothing Cup coach of the year and watched on at Ashwood Park as his Bathurst Bulldogs held off Orange Emus to win the Blowes Clothing Cup first grade premiership.
"It's been a big year, it's been a stressful year, it's been quite a hard year. There's a lot of work put in, and you've got to keep putting that effort in," Oxley said.
"The players buying in was a big deal because I challenged them, I challenged the club actually, and at times it was quite challenging for me. But we got there and the reward is really big."
BATHURST Bulldogs celebrated premierships in first, thirds and women's competitions in 2019, while CSU took out the New Holland Cup.
"I couldn't have scripted it any better today," Bulldogs president Greg Reid said.
"Yes we would've loved to win all grades, but you don't always win and football is football. But to do what we did today, win three grand finals, I'm immensely proud as president."
BATHURST union talent Felix Quinn had a solid season for the Manly Marlins, making it to the semi-final stage of the Sydney colts competition.
"My rugby's come along really well. Compared to my ability when I was playing in Bathurst my game's come a long way," Quinn said.
"I've been lucky enough to have been selected as the colts club captain to represent the whole collective. You also get exposure to training with the first grade guys."
WHEN the Blue Bulls took out this year's Caldwell Cup with a 45-21 victory over Illawarra, the side included Bathurst Bulldogs talents Peter Fitzsimmons, Justin Mobbs, Joe Nash, Matt Trapp and Alex Weal.
BATHURST hosted a Super W match for the first time in 2019, with the NSW Waratahs outclassing Melbourne Rebels in all facets to post a 66-12 win at Ashwood Park.
"To take a game out here was a big thing we wanted to do, and engage with the local community. That's something I think we've done quite well. That side of it was great," Waratahs coach Matthew Evrard said.
THE Bathurst Bulldogs women made it three consecutive title wins when beating Orange Emus 34-28 in this year's grand final.
The win marked the first time since Dubbo Rhinos clinched the 2006-07-08 titles that a women's team had secured a premiership treble.
"We've never been lucky enough to win a grand final at home before and to have people come here and support us, it means a lot to us," Bulldogs skipper Mel Waterford said.
"It's just something you dream of. Some people are never lucky enough to play in a grand final, let alone win one. So to be able to win three in a row, it's an amazing feeling."
CSU coming from a 19-point half-time deficit to beat defending premiers Narromine on their home turf at Cale Oval in the New Holland Cup grand final - yep that's an upset of epic proportions.
BATHURST teenager Hamper Kemp ventured to Ireland after signing a contract with Garryowen Football Club.
It is a club which, in its 125-year history has been crowned an All Ireland League champion three times and won the Munster Senior Cup 37 times - a record no rival can match.
SHE skippered the Central West women's side to Country Championships glory, captained the Bathurst Bulldogs to a Ferguson Cup title defence and lined up for the NSW Country Corellas. Yep, 2019 was a good season for Mel Waterford.
THERE are plenty of players who brought that special spark to their teams in 2019, but Bathurst Bulldogs centre Harry 'Buzz' Webber gets our nod for the biggest x-factor.
THERE were plenty of talented juniors in action in 2019, including the Bathurst Bulldogs under 9s side which made the semi-finals of the Chatswood Challenge Cup.
Bulldogs coach Phil Lewis was delighted with the effort given his team was only formed the week of the event.
"The kids did really well," he said.
"The team members came down to who could get there and who couldn't, so they only had the chance to get in one training session as a new team before the championships.
"The team was a combination of the under 9s Bulldogs blue and gold teams, so the young players were not used to competing together."
AS Bulldogs held off a late challenge from defending premiers Orange Emus to post a 27-24 win in the Blowes Clothing Cup grand final, it marked the first time blue and golds had hoisted the trophy since beating Narromine 2010.
For Bulldogs president Greg Reid, there was both elation and a sense of relief.
"We just needed that so badly as a club," he said.
"We wanted to win the first grade title because it had been such a long time since we've won and to not have hosted one [grand final day] at Bulldogs had really hurt us as a club.
"We are a really proud club and we wanted to get that so badly, it had eluded us for so long."