BOYS from the bush have no right to win - it is an attitude that Cameron Greenhalgh knows his Western Rams side will face most weeks in the Presidents Cup competition and one he is determined to defy.
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It will require hard work, it will require continued improvement and it will probably require luck as well, but Greenhalgh knows the pride that comes with wearing a coveted Rams jersey will inspire his squad to do just that.
"That's the thing we are going to come up against every weekend, that attitude 'They're the boys from the bush and they've got no right to beat us city fellas'," Greenhalgh said.
"We've just got to overcome that and Western is very proud in that area, stepping up when we need to, so we just have to keep going the next seven or eight weeks and keep playing the best footy we can."
Last Sunday as Western began its campaign in the new competition they lost 20-4 to Hills District. Greenhalgh's men did not always stick to their game plan and under fatigue their attack did become predictable.
But the coach saw plenty of grit and determination and he knows those factors - combined with the natural talent within his squad - gives Western a good platform on which to build.
"We kept on competing right to the 80th minute, we just had a bad 20-minute period, probably the third 20 minutes where we let a couple of soft tries in," he said.
"That's the disappointing thing when you're playing a side like the Bulls, that I look back and can only remember one mistake from them in the first 20 minutes. Other than that, they completed their sets every time, so it was tough going.
"When we went back and got tired and fatigued through too much defence, I thought we went a little bit one-out, which sides with good defensive structures will just pick you off as they see you.
"So if we can get more blokes pushing around the football and playing at the line, playing up tempo, that's what we need to improve on.
"There was a few times we went away from what we were doing, but that was expected. Hopefully we improve a little bit each week just in a few areas."
With other many of the eight other teams in the Presidents Cup competition having proven combinations and able to train more regularly than Western, Greenhalgh admits he has told his players they "are going to be under the pump for awhile".
But that just means Western needs to work hard and the coach knows they can do that.
This Saturday the Rams will play against the Illawarra-based Western Suburbs Devils, a side which lost 22-16 to Thirroul in the opening round after at one stage leading by 12 points.
Devils coach Pete McLeod commented his side was "really ripping in for each other" and that he expects they will have benefited from the match-fitness they gained.
Halfback Justin Rodrigues, who previously represented Malta, set up two tries with his smart kicking game, but the Rams also have talented play makers to steer them around.
While their set-piece moves are a work in progress, Greenhalgh knows the combination of halfback Harry Siejka and five-eighth Mitch Burke is one which can create plenty in attack.
"Harry's obviously played a lot of football at a high level and his calmness on a football field is something that we haven't had. Mitch plays off-the-cuff a little bit as a running five-eighth, he's played a lot of rep footy as well," he said.
"So it's good to have those fellas with experience, that helps the other fellas. If everyone can play their role and don't overplay their hand, we'll be right."
Siejka and Burke are part of an unchanged line-up from round one who will face the Devils on Saturday. Kick-off at Parrish Park is at 3.10pm Saturday.
