Blowes Cup: The five things we've learned from the opening third of the season

While the winning form of competitions leaders Orange Emus remains a constant, as it has over the best past of the last decade, there's been other blowouts, upset wins, individual brilliance and an interesting road trip trend.

Here's the five things we've learned from the opening third of Central West Rugby Union's top tier, in no particular order.

Traye Hodge has been a revelation for Orange City, so much so we're certain he's capable of orchestrating something special in 2021... if the side can put it all together holistically, of course.

In recent years Orange City has lacked a genuine five-eighth.

Don't for a second think we're discrediting anyone else's efforts here, because the Lions have had plenty of talent filling that No.10 jersey but they've largely been the best option for the role rather than genuine five-eighths.

Joe Lasagavibau in 2020 is a great example of that, a supremely talented player who was the best option to play 10 last year, but nonetheless a bloke who is more suited to playing fullback or outside centre.

In Hodge the Lions have a genuine, naturally-creative play-maker who has already proved a handful for the competition's best sides, and he's complemented by a well-rounded pack and a starchy backline inspired by creative selections.

With superb ball retention, the Lions have built a foundation of gritty, no-frills rugby this season and pushed the competition's best doing it.

With Hodge calling the shots, now's the time to add some more inspiration to what the side is doing with the ball once they've won it. If it comes together, there's no reason Orange City can't turn those close losses in victories.

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We've waxed lyrical about this already in 2021, but hosting rights week-to-week appears to have become far more important this season than in previous years.

Prior to last weekend's fifth round, 11 of the 12 games that had been played were won by the home team and the one that wasn't was a technicality in Emus' victory over Orange City at Wade Park, so it doesn't really count.

While it was always somewhat tougher, in past years it was never overwhelmingly more difficult for sides to win on the road and there was usually an away win in any given week.

That trend changed slightly on Saturday with Emus beating Cowra at home and Bathurst Bulldogs knocking off Orange City at Pride Park but, crucially, they were close games. Really close, in the latter fixture.

And it still makes for 86 per cent of games this season being won by the home side, and we'll go as far as saying wins on the road could well make the difference through the final 10 rounds of the season.

Through Emus' dominant run in the last seven years one of the greens' hallmarks has been strength in numbers, with no one player consistently standing head and shoulders above the rest week-to-week.

This year, flanker Jack Marchinton has been on a completely different level to his teammates and the rest of the competition to boot.

He's picked up three best and fairest points, at club level, in almost every game so far in 2021 and we'd be very, very surprised if he's not leading the competition's Player of the Year tally - the referees have had an even better view, after all.

It's not entirely surprising because Marchinton's been consistently strong for years and had a genuine claim for that top gong in 2018, but the undersized breakaway's efforts this year have gone beyond even his lofty standards.

Put simply, he's been the best flanker in the competition by a mile this year and, if he's available, he should be inked into Central West's back-row for the NSW Country Rugby Union Championships.

If the Blue Bulls coaches haven't got on the blower to Marchinton yet they need to, now.

Cowra have always been enigmatic - world beaters one week and, almost inexplicably, incapable of putting it together the next.

The Eagles have returned to the fold in 2021 and they've lost none of that unpredictability, with opposition sides not knowing which Cowra side they'll face until they take the paddock.

From being hammered by Forbes in round one to easily beating Orange City and Bathurst Bulldogs in the next fortnight, then blowing it against Dubbo Kangaroos and failing to capitalise on a mountain of possession against Emus.

They're a rollercoaster ride, but there's no doubt when Cowra put it together they're as good as any side in the competition.

They just need to do that for more than one week at a time.

We didn't crunch the numbers because we don't need to, it would be a long time since the Dubbo Kangaroos were sitting last after the first five rounds of the season.

Granted, they're only last based on Orange City picking up more bonus points so far, Roos have actually secured two victories to the Lions' one, but they've still been underwhelming.

A huge reason they picked up that second win, over Cowra, was a second-half blitz from former Cockatoo Filisione Pauta and he, reportedly, had sacrificed playing for Roos to focus on his rugby league exploits this year.

They've had injuries and plenty of them but that's not new at No.1 Oval, famously the side was forced to battle half a dozen players rupturing their ACLs in one season not long ago, but were still strong.

They've had some of their more-experienced players sidelined for different - justifiable - reasons as well and they've fielded a different starting XV every week, which naturally causes a lack of cohesion.

Perhaps it's simply a changing of the guard at Roos, perhaps injuries are taking a bigger toll than in previous years. We're genuinely not sure, so we probably haven't actually learned anything here... except that it's weird to see Roos on the bottom.

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