THE trumpets might not be blaring from the sidelines and the chants will be silenced for a year but you can't stop the excitement from building up for another edition of the Astley Cup.
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The tri-school event will still be going ahead at the end of this month, minus supporters, and Bathurst High School are finalising their team lineups in a bid to make it four straight titles.
The cup will undoubtedly have a different feel to it in 2020, not only due to the lack of spectator support but because players have had limited time to prepare in local competitions.
The Astley Cup was pushed back from its original date to the end of term three due to the uncertainty around the coronavirus situation several months ago.
It had threatened to put an end to the cup's uninterrupted 80-year streak of competition.
Bathurst High have just finishing piecing the last of their teams together and now the focus turns to getting in whatever training they can for their opening tie against Dubbo Senior College on September 2.
Bathurst High sports co-ordinator Lachlan Blaikie said preparations are coming together this week.
"We finalised the last of our team on Monday. We had to run some trials for tennis. We've had a few kids step up into that team this year and the rest of the squad is finalised. It's now about getting in that last minute training," he said.
"We can get into that now that we've got our squads, and it's important because we haven't had any practice with CHS [Combined High Schools] games being cancelled this year.
"Rugby league, soccer and netball are back so the kids are starting to play again. Now it's about finding time to build continuity in their teams because not all of them play together normally."
Finding a strong spot in the Bathurst High squad is difficult - not because there isn't one, but because of the way sport has been affected this year.
Blaikie said good preparation will be key in a season where opportunities to play have been limited.
"There's changes to a lot of the teams so it's hard to predict how they will all go. We obviously don't know how they'll perform after being out of action for a while," he said.
"We're also not sure how much training Orange and Dubbo have been doing in the lead up. I know they're very dedicated to that training, and I think the fact that they haven't won for a few years means they'll be putting some focus on it."
The lack of spectators will be a disappointing but understandable sight, given the necessity for social distancing and number restrictions at venues.
Schools will be doing what they can to keep people engaged and connected with how the cup progresses.
"We're in the process of getting a livestream going. The people who can't come, due to restrictions, will still have the chance to watch," Blaikie said.
"It's great for the kids that it's going ahead. It will be a different feel not having the school there supporting them in person but we've talked about the possibility of getting the stream going in the school theatre."
Bathurst High will have an extra week to prepare as Orange and Dubbo play the opening tie on August 27.